Cricket: ICC satisfied match not 'fixed'

The International Cricket Council says Pakistan captain Younis Khan is not under suspicion for corruption after dropping a sitter of a catch against New Zealand on Saturday.

The Ahmedabad Mirror newspaper, who said the ICC's anti-corruption unit was investigating , ran a retraction today, but said its article had been "clearly written that to simply conclude that some mischief was on would be jumping the gun".

Khan said he was nursing a fractured finger during the Champions Trophy semifinal but conceded the dropped catch cost his side the game.

However, it appears not everyone is satisfied that the Black Caps' win over Pakistan was a fair result.

A Pakistani parliamentarian has accused the national cricket team of deliberately losing matches in the Champions Trophy and has demanded an explanation from the coach, captain and chairman of the board.

"We will be meeting with them on October 13 as we feel the team deliberately lost the games against Australia and New Zealand," Jamshed Dasti, chairman of Standing Committee on Sports in the Pakistan Lower House, told the Associated Press on Tuesday.

Pakistan were defeated by Australia in the last group match last week before losing to New Zealand in the semi-final.

"They lost to Australia just to keep India out of the tournament," Dasti said.

Australia might not have qualified for the semi-final had Pakistan won against the defending champion and India could have advanced had they defeated West Indies by a big margin.

"There are lots of doubts on the performance of the team and we feel it has to be cleared by the PCB (Pakistan Cricket Board) officials and the team management," Dasti said.

"The way we lost in the semi-final, it has left the whole nation disappointed and the PCB has to give answers."

Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam and captain Younis Khan returned home on Monday, while PCB chairman Ijaz Butt remained in South Africa to attend International Cricket Council meetings.

It is not the first time that the parliamentary committee has summoned PCB officials, however the committee has only the power to give recommendations to the prime minister and the president.

"This time I can assure you that we will make sure our recommendations be given due considerations," Dasti said.

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari is the patron-in-chief of the PCB.

- NZPA, AAP