Ijaz's Butt apologises for match-fixing comments

[Sachinism]

SarahSky: The ECB has released a statement saying the board is unanimously committed to continuing with the current series against Pakistan.

[The Outsider]

Personally, I must say that I find the abbreviation "Paki" derogatory - I can certainly remember as a youngster in the British midlands being abused by white racists using that epithet. However, if Pakistani people themselves have no objection to the abbreviation, then I guess it is OK although I would personally never use it. I can't also remember hearing it when I was in India (though that was a few years ago) - I suspect most of the people who use it are people of Indian origin in Britain who have internalised it from British racists. But I may be wrong......

It is racist/derogatory only in Britain, maybe in Canada as well. It is used regularly in the US and Australia as a legitimate abbreviation, even by Pakistanis themselves.

[ravishingravi]

Cricinfo:- Butt has shot himself in both feet By Osman Samiuddin Ijaz Butt is not a tabloid. Even if he had been one, then hurling accusations at another team for having thrown a match probably wouldn't have passed for acceptable behaviour. He would have been chided for not going to the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit or police officials first and handing over some proof before revealing all; chided, that is, for not following a process. No, Butt is not a tabloid. He is the sitting board chairman of a full member of the ICC. To say what he has said publicly scrapes even the barrel of unacceptable social decorum. To do so to the team of a board whose chairman has gone out of his way to help you, as Giles Clarke has, over the last year is outside the bounds of sane behavior. Clarke heads the ICC's task force on bringing cricket back to Pakistan; he has pushed the idea of an international XI playing here. In September's Wisden Cricketer, Clarke writes knowledgeably and with some passion of the importance of international cricket returning to Pakistan. If a slap in the face was acceptable as a return for favours, then here is Butt's response. Forget Clarke: what is the chairman saying to his own team? "Sorry Gul and company, that super win of yours, against-all-odds, from an unwinnable position and all that? Sorry, that was only because the other team might have thrown it." And it should be worrying, very worrying, that the debate Butt is starting displays a total lack of understanding of the nuances of modern fixing. How can Pakistan be blamed for fixing when it loses and when it wins, asks Butt. If he doesn't know - or chooses to ignore - the irrelevance of spot-fixing to the ultimate result of a match, harder times lie in wait. To be kind, it is understandable that the PCB feels under siege. The second set of allegations from the Sun feel considerably less substantial than the first. Scoring patterns, a few overs, dons in Dubai and Delhi, a source; compared to the News Of The World, this is all very inexact. Other papers in the UK have also speculated wildly and often inaccurately. A breed under siege needs to hit back, to retaliate. And retaliation, if you feel you've been genuinely wronged, can be justified and useful. But a basic minimum requirement is to identify the correct target. It wasn't Clarke or the ECB who started this. It was a tabloid. Sue them for defamation, take them to court. Launch an investigation against them. Is the ICC's executive the target? Speak to other ICC members about it. Develop a consensus, build a coalition, make friends, influence people. Take them to court if you really feel the need. Ranting from this kind of a written statement is not retaliation, unless shooting yourself in the head is an acceptable form of retaliation. The PCB may well even have a fair bone or two to pick with the ICC. The suits at the ICC's head office are more expensive these days. The interiors of their offices are flashier too. Overall the edifice is slicker. And they still can't, in this day and age, do something as basic as getting in touch with two leading boards to let them know that they are about to release a very significant statement that concerns a match their sides have just played. Neither the PCB nor the ECB, as is apparent from their stances, were told this statement was coming out. The ICC claimed it tried to contact Butt all day on Friday before releasing the statement on Saturday morning. Butt was in Delhi, having met Sharad Pawar earlier in the week. Pawar is the president of the ICC. Butt and Pawar's meeting was widely reported around the world, on ESPNcricinfo, on TV in India and Pakistan and wire agencies. The ICC, it appears remarkably, was unaware of this meeting so they tried Butt on his phone, one which, because he was in India and because there is no roaming cellular service between the two countries, was unavailable. The ICC did not think to contact someone at the PCB HQ in Lahore, the spokesman perhaps, the chairman's assistant, the chief operating officer, or the GM cricket operations, both men who are regular ICC meeting attendees, to leave with them a message perhaps, or Lord help us, to find a way of contacting Butt. Should they have released a statement at all? On balance, if they hadn't, then a tabloid-fuelled frenzy of speculation and accusation could've been worse. Should they have done so without consulting either board? Absolutely not. Newspapers don't run conspiracies, they run a business, which requires it to make money by selling more of itself. And the ICC governs a sport which has less full, elite members than a human has fingers. By getting rid of Pakistan, it makes its own sport considerably less competitive. None of this - the ICC's incompetence, or even the allegations of the Sun - constitute, however, a "conspiracy to defraud Pakistan". It is a neat bit of wordplay (surprisingly neat actually) cynically designed to win over local opinion numbed into buying such theories instead of looking inwards. To one channel in his wide-ranging assault, Butt said the purpose of the PCB's investigation was to prove to people in Pakistan that the board should not be blamed for this, as they have been equally since the Lord's Test. A reality check is needed. Why would anyone conspire against Pakistan? To bring them down from the giddy heights of sixth in the Test and seventh in the ODI rankings? Newspapers don't run conspiracies, they run a business, which requires it to make money by selling more of itself. News of fixing sells, now more than ever. And the ICC governs a sport which has less full, elite members than a human has fingers. By getting rid of Pakistan, it makes its own limited, increasingly uncompetitive sport considerably less competitive and competition is the one thing that will sustain it; strictly on the field, in such a tough summer, let's not forget that Pakistan has done better than many had thought, in winning two Tests, two Twenty20s and at least one, possibly more, ODIs. New Zealand, Bangladesh and West Indies hope for results such as that. But how much longer can it go on? The PCB's relationship with the ICC has broken down entirely, that much is clear. Furthermore Butt has ensured that what few friends the PCB has are swiftly being lost. South Africa, privately, are making noises about playing Pakistan. New Zealand might do soon. More neutral Tests in England are unlikely. India is hostage to political winds. If the darkest day in Pakistan's cricket actually does come, and talk of giving Pakistan a temporary break becomes reality, it will not be the result of any conspiracy. It will be the result of the worst administration ever to have run cricket in this land http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/current/story/477920.html Probably the most balanced article on the subject

[SachDan]

Botham says Pak should be banned from International cricket!

[cowboysfan]

this reminds me of a moral story about a scorpion and the tortoise .I hope this is a lesson to the ECB and to the world.If you try to help a scorpion then it will take both down with it.

[putrevus]

This guy is buffoon, how can he say what he said and get away with it, ECB was trying to help Pakistan, will any country help pakistan or want to play Pakistan anymore, WTF is he thinking and why in world is England playing this ODI.

[thevortex]

Just replace "this land" in the last sentence of this article with "any land" and the article will be complete.

[asterix]

This guy is buffoon' date=' how can he say what he said and get away with it, ECB was trying to help Pakistan, will any country help pakistan or want to play Pakistan anymore, WTF is he thinking and why in world is England playing this ODI.[/quote'] Do you know Butt's history? If I'm not wrong, he was at the helm of creating issues during Gatting-Shakur Rana episode. He was in PCB board at that time. Was he the chief, I'm not sure...

[vamos_rafa]

Pakistan chief denies England 'fix' claim

Pakistan cricket chief Ijaz Butt denied accusing England players of match-fixing on Monday after earlier suggesting they may have thrown a one-day international for "enormous" sums of cash. In an interview with BBC Radio Five Live, the Pakistan Cricket Board chairman said he had merely been relaying information from bookmakers relating to England's one-day defeat to Pakistan at the Oval on Friday. "I have never said this. If you listen to the full tape of the NDTV interview, the bookies are saying this. I am not saying this," Butt said. Asked about mounting calls for the remaining two matches in the series -- at Lord's on Monday and Southampton on Wednesday -- to be cancelled, Butt said he wanted the games to go ahead. "If they (the England and Wales Cricket Board) want to scrap it they can scrap it, we will go ahead with it," Butt told the BBC. Butt triggered uproar late Sunday in an interview with the NDTV news channel where he linked England's cricketers to match-fixing. "There is loud and clear talk in bookie circles that some English players were paid enormous amounts of money to lose the (Oval) match," Butt said. "No wonder there was total collapse of the English side." Butt's comments came after fresh corruption claims against Pakistan emerged on Saturday, with Britain's Sun tabloid claiming to have been made aware of details of Pakistan's innings before Friday's match had got underway. The paper tipped off the ICC, which then watched as scoring patterns in two suspect overs emerged as predicted, The Sun said. But the overall result of the match was not believed to be fixed, the report added. An England and Wales Cricket Board spokesman said the organisation was making no comment about Butt's charges. However his remarks are certain to infuriate England's players, who have seen their own achievements in the Test series victory over Pakistan diminished by the corruption scandal embroiling the tourists. ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said the new allegations raised by The Sun -- which follow the suspension of three Pakistan players for alleged involvement in spot-fixing -- warranted further investigation. Butt, however, told NDTV there was a conspiracy to "defraud Pakistan and Pakistani cricket" and threatened to reveal names of those involved in the conspiracy. Pakistan's Salman Butt, Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif have all been questioned by British police over an alleged plot to bowl deliberate no-balls during last month's Test at Lord's. A fourth player -- seamer Wahab Riaz -- was also interviewed by the British authorities. All have denied any wrongdoing.

I think this is what they call shooting from the hip..or in this case shooting from the BUTT... Anyways this game of passing the buck everyday is getting too cyclic now.

[putrevus]

Do you know Butt's history? If I'm not wrong' date=' he was at the helm of creating issues during Gatting-Shakur Rana episode. He was in PCB board at that time. Was he the chief, I'm not sure...[/quote'] This is not some loose statement , he has given many of them over years, this is him actually accusing England players of match fixing, I don't think he even has touched this heights of Buffoonery.

[Mamu]

I think this is what they call shooting from the hip..or in this case shooting from the BUTT... Anyways this game of passing the buck everyday is getting too cyclic now.

It is getting sickening now. Not exactly sure what the solution is to the problems created by this nation full of animals from the circus. Lot of people will say Ban them, which is I don't think is a solution exactly.

[ina_jawaan]

Eminent Pakistani journalist condemns Butt administration At last - a sane, balanced and well researched account of the unfolding crisis - well done Osman Samiuddin! http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/477920.html Butt has shot himself in both feet The PCB chief's statements attacking a board that has worked hard to bring international cricket to Pakistan are beyond the boundaries of sanity. But the ICC is also to blame Osman Samiuddin September 20, 2010 Ijaz Butt is not a tabloid. Even if he had been one, then hurling accusations at another team for having thrown a match probably wouldn't have passed for acceptable behaviour. He would have been chided for not going to the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit or police officials first and handing over some proof before revealing all; chided, that is, for not following a process. No, Butt is not a tabloid. He is the sitting board chairman of a full member of the ICC. To say what he has said publicly scrapes even the barrel of unacceptable social decorum. To do so to the team of a board whose chairman has gone out of his way to help, as Giles Clarke has over the last year, is outside the bounds of sane behaviour. Clarke heads the ICC's task force on bringing cricket back to Pakistan; he has pushed the idea of an international XI playing here. In September's Wisden Cricketer, Clarke writes knowledgeably and with some passion of the importance of international cricket returning to Pakistan. If a slap in the face was acceptable as a return for favours, then here is Butt's response. Forget Clarke: what is the chairman saying to his own team? "Sorry Gul and company, that super win of yours, against all odds, from an unwinnable position and all that? Sorry, that was only because the other team might have thrown it." And it should be worrying, very worrying, that the debate Butt is starting displays a total lack of understanding of the nuances of modern fixing. How can Pakistan be blamed for fixing when they lose and when they win, asks Butt. If he doesn't know - or chooses to ignore - the irrelevance of spot-fixing to the ultimate result of a match, harder times lie in wait. To be kind, it is understandable that the PCB feels under siege. The second set of allegations from the Sun feels considerably less substantial than the first. Scoring patterns, a few overs, dons in Dubai and Delhi, a source; compared to the News Of The World, this is all very inexact. Other papers in the UK have also speculated wildly and often inaccurately. A breed under siege needs to hit back, to retaliate. And retaliation, if you feel you've been genuinely wronged, can be justified and useful. But a basic minimum requirement is to identify the correct target. It wasn't Clarke or the ECB who started this. It was a tabloid. Sue them for defamation, take them to court. Launch an investigation against them. Is the ICC's executive the target? Speak to other ICC members about it. Develop a consensus, build a coalition, make friends, influence people. Take them to court if you really feel the need. Ranting from this kind of a written statement is not retaliation, unless shooting yourself in the head is an acceptable form of retaliation. The PCB may well even have a fair bone or two to pick with the ICC. The suits at the ICC's head office are more expensive these days. The interiors of their offices are flashier too. Overall the edifice is slicker. And they still can't, in this day and age, do something as basic as getting in touch with two leading boards to let them know that they are about to release a very significant statement that concerns a match their sides have just played. Neither the PCB nor the ECB, as is apparent from their stances, were told this statement was coming out. The ICC claimed it tried to contact Butt all day on Friday before releasing the statement on Saturday morning. Butt was in Delhi, having met Sharad Pawar earlier in the week. Pawar is the president of the ICC. Butt and Pawar's meeting was widely reported around the world, on ESPNcricinfo, on TV in India and Pakistan, and by wire agencies. The ICC, it appears, remarkably, was unaware of this meeting so they tried Butt on his phone, one that, because he was in India and because there is no roaming cellular service between the two countries, was unavailable. The ICC did not think to contact someone at the PCB HQ in Lahore, the spokesman perhaps, the chairman's assistant, the chief operating officer, or the GM cricket operations - both of the latter are regular ICC meeting attendees - to leave with them a message, or Lord help us, to find a way of contacting Butt. Should the ICC have released a statement at all? On balance, if they hadn't, then a tabloid-fuelled frenzy of speculation and accusation could've been worse. Should they have done so without consulting either board? Absolutely not. Newspapers don't run conspiracies, they run a business, which requires them to make money by selling more papers. And the ICC governs a sport that has fewer full, elite members than a human has fingers. By getting rid of Pakistan, it makes its own sport considerably less competitive None of this - the ICC's incompetence, or even the allegations of the Sun - constitute, however, a "conspiracy to defraud Pakistan". It is a neat bit of wordplay (surprisingly neat actually), cynically designed to win over local opinion numbed into buying such theories instead of looking inwards. To one channel, in his wide-ranging assault, Butt said the purpose of the PCB's investigation was to prove to people in Pakistan that the board should not be blamed for this, as they have been equally since the Lord's Test. A reality check is needed. Why would anyone conspire against Pakistan? To bring them down from the giddy heights of sixth in the Test and seventh in the ODI rankings? Newspapers don't run conspiracies, they run a business, which requires them to make money by selling more papers. News of fixing sells, now more than ever. And the ICC governs a sport that has fewer full, elite members than a human has fingers. By getting rid of Pakistan, it makes its own limited, increasingly uncompetitive, sport considerably less competitive, and competition is the one thing that will sustain it. Strictly on the field, in such a tough summer, let's not forget that Pakistan have done better than many had thought, in winning two Tests, two Twenty20s and at least one, possibly more, ODIs. New Zealand, Bangladesh and West Indies hope for results such as those. But how much longer can it go on? The PCB's relationship with the ICC has broken down entirely, that much is clear. Furthermore Butt has ensured that what few friends the PCB has are swiftly being lost. South Africa, privately, are making noises about playing Pakistan. New Zealand might do soon. More neutral Tests in England are unlikely. India is hostage to political winds. If the darkest day in Pakistan's cricket actually does come, and talk of giving Pakistan a temporary break becomes reality, it will not be the result of any conspiracy. It will be the result of the worst administration ever to have run cricket in this land. Osman Samiuddin is Pakistan editor of Cricinfo

[VRV Singh]

I am struggling to think of a more idiotic statement by a guy in such a position within cricket... It even surpasses by a distance Sepp Blatter (FIFA)'s muppetry in football

[asterix]

This is not some loose statement ' date=' he has given many of them over years, this is him actually accusing England players of match fixing, I don't think he even has touched this heights of Buffoonery.[/quote'] That's trademark Pakistan counterattack, without any substance. just compare this with the 26/11 episode. India accuses Pakistani establishment and keeps on coming up with various proof. Pakistan then comes back and accuses India of terrorist attacks..

[vamos_rafa]

It is getting sickening now. Not exactly sure what the solution is to the problems created by this nation full of animals from the circus. Lot of people will say Ban them, which is I don't think is a solution exactly.

Yes it is getting sickening now. And the more frustrating part is the ever changing statements by these clowns from Pakistan. The decision should be taken only after the investigations are done. But in the mean time these retards make irritating statements day in and day out. Instead they should look at their own pack of jokers and throw out the weeds.

[Fontaine]

I think it's great. Cricket is much more hilarious with clowns from Pakistan cricket making fools of themselves.

[HowardRoark]

When did Osman become an eminent journalist??? :hysterical: You seem to be in love with all things Paki in all the threads - from Afridi to Osman to some delusional paki fanboy here on ICF... About the article, it looks like finally the paki cricket writers are waking up to reality and accepting that they are wrong albeit with IFs and BUTs. They seemed to have realised that more denial will harm their credibility, of whatever is left.

[The Outsider]

He would have still been within the confines of the buffoonery he, his board, and players have already committed if he had restricted the statement to : "There is loud and clear talk in bookie circles that some English players were paid enormous amounts of money to lose the (Oval) match" It was the next line which took it to a completely different level : "No wonder there was total collapse of the English side." I really do hope the ECB take PCB to the court. It will be a vindication for a lot Indians who predicted this kind of garbage ages ago, and were shot down as being anti Pakistani for historical reasons.

[Fontaine]

I think it's fantastic. Now the whole world is seeing just what I've been saying for years about the pakistan team being mostly full of cheating, fixing, ball tampering, doping, druggie bastards run by an incompetent board with a blind eye. Hopefully the pakistan high commission's watul-shamsa husseinwhatever his name is can come in a repeat the same nonsense Butt was saying. Then the circle of insanity will be complete. Oh and a special mention should go to wahab riaz. The guy is only a few games into his career and already he's behaving like a seasoned veteran in the pak team in taking bribes, getting into altercations with other players. Surely he must be in the running for pak player of the year.

[ina_jawaan]

When did Osman become an eminent journalist??? :hysterical: You seem to be in love with all things Paki in all the threads - from Afridi to Osman to some delusional paki fanboy here on ICF... About the article, it looks like finally the paki cricket writers are waking up to reality and accepting that they are wrong albeit with IFs and BUTs. They seemed to have realised that more denial will harm their credibility, of whatever is left.

I am in love with cricket - irrespective of the nationality, ethnicity or race of the individual concerned. If you have a problem with that I suggest you have no place in a forum for cricket lovers and should join a community of like minded spreaders of hate - the Klu Klux Klan perhaps or the British National Party where you can happily spend your days spreading bile filth, lies and racist poison about "pakis" ?! And yes as the Pakistan editor of the largest cricket website in the world, and someone whose writing illuminates issues of concern in an entertaining and engaging way, yes I would call him an eminent journalist - the fact that you think this equates to "loving all things paki" says all we need to know about you. I also note that ravishingravi on the following thread calls this article the most balanced article so far on the saga so I can't be the only one here who enjoys good cricket writing, irrespective of the nationality of the hand holding the pen! http://www.indiancricketfans.com/showthread.php?t=241155