Cricket's anti-corruption unit to investigate match
Pakistan captain Younis Khan's dropped catch at a crucial point in Saturday night's Champions Trophy cricket match against New Zealand has roused suspicions of corrupt play.
While strenuously denying deliberately dropping the ball, Younis conceded that the dropped catch cost his team the Champions Trophy semifinal tie in Johannesburg.
Butthe International Cricket Council's (ICC) anti-corruption unit will be having a good look at the match, according to the Ahmedabad Mirror, though it noted "it would be jumping the gun at this stage to suggest a hanky panky semifinal".
The match was evenly poised when Younis dropped Grant Elliott in the covers off teenage fast bowler Mohammad Aamer in the 40th over, with the New Zealand batsman then on 42 in his team's total of 165 for four.
New Zealand needed 69 to win at that stage with six wickets in hand, but Elliott steered his team home with a crucial 104-run stand for the fifth wicket with skipper Daniel Vettori (41).
"The officials are guarded in their reactions at this stage, but indeed, the tapes of the Pakistan-New Zealand semifinal match are on their way to the anti-corruption unit," the newspaper reported.
Younis "shockingly" gave priority to the safety of an injured finger to making the catch, it said.
The Pakistan captain showed an after-match press conference the bandaged little finger of his right hand, and said the reason he missed the catch was because he was trying to protect a fractured finger.
"When I ran Gautam Gambhir out with the same hand, people clapped and said `what a patriot, playing for the country with a broken finger'. Now, the same people will call me names, they will suggest I was up to something. I am not worried about anything".
