Umark Akmal has been summoned by the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) Anti Corruption Unit (ACU) to explain his sensational claims of being approached by spot-fixers during the ICC 2015 World Cup.
Akmal had made the startling claims during a recent appearance on Samaa TV.
“I had got an offer during the World Cup to leave alone two balls and they were willing to pay me $200,000 for that,” he said.
“It was our first match against India in the 2015 World Cup.
“Similar offers have been made in the past as well.
“In the matches with India I’ve been told to make some excuse and opt out of the game for which I’d be paid but I have told those people that I am committed to Pakistan and to not approach me ever with such offers.”
Update: Notice served to Umar Akmal. He has been asked to appear before PCB Anti Corruption Unit (ACU) on June 27.
— PCB Media (@TheRealPCBMedia) June 24, 2018
The PCB notice for Akmal comes on the heels of the ICC announcing its own investigations into the matter.
“The ICC is aware of a recent interview given by Umar Akmal. Whilst we note that there is no suggestion that any ‘fix’ actually took place, the ICC is reliant on players to report any corrupt approaches in a timely manner,” the ICC’s official statement had said.
“This is critical to our efforts to gather information on potential ‘fixers’ and to disrupt and prevent their efforts to corrupt the game. As such we are taking Akmal’s comments very seriously,” it added.
Under the Anti Corruption Code of the ICC, players are required to immediately report any approach by fixers and bookies. Failure to report an approach is punishable offence under both ICC and PCB anti-corruption laws and a player can face a maximum ban of up to five years if found guilty of doing so.
The 28-year-old batsman has been given an ultimatum to appear before PCB’s ACU by June 27. It is not yet clear whether Akmal had reported the approach at the time to the concerned authorities.
The controversial batsman last turned out in Pakistan colours in an ODI against Australia at Adelaide in 2017.
