Delhi Police to re-open match-fixing cases
Even though the Board of Control for Cricket in India [ Images ] is tightlipped about the recent allegations made by Vinod Kambli, former India opener Chetan Chauhan feels the Board should seriously look into the matter.
- Decision to field 1996 WC semis stunned me: Kambli
Chauhan says since Kambli was a part of the squad, "the claims should be investigated properly, and those found guilty should be punished".
Kambli has raised question marks about India's 1996 World Cup semi-final against Sri Lanka [ Images ], hinting that the match could have been fixed.
The former India middle-order batsman has questioned then captain Mohammad Azharuddin's [ Images ] decision to field first in the semi-final even though it was unanimously decided that the team would bat after winning the toss.
Azharuddin, however, rubbished the claims. He told CNN IBN that Kambli "must have been sleeping when the decision to bowl was taken" and "it was a collective one".
"We wanted to chase after we lost to Sri Lanka in Kotla in the previous match," said Azharuddin.
Asked whether the Delhi [ Images ] police plans to reopen the investigation in light of the court proceedings and subsequent conviction of some leading Pakistan cricketers, Ashok Chand, Deputy Commissioner Special Branch, said the court case in spot-fixing in England has no bearing on the case registered by the Delhi police.
The Delhi Police, which unearthed the match-fixing scandal involving late former South Africa [ Images ] captain Hansie Cronje [ Images ] and also implicated Azharuddin, said the case could be re-investigated.
"We are waiting for the forensic report on voice samples collected by us during the investigations. There is no question of re-opening the case because we had never closed the case. We have conducted our own investigations and CBI investigated the case on its own," Chand told rediff.com on Friday.
The Delhi police, meanwhile, is waiting for a report on the authenticity of tape recordings of cell phone conversations that allegedly contain discussions between Cronje and London-based bookmaker Sanjeev Chawla.
After initially denying their involvement in the match-fixing scandal, both Cronje and Herschelle Gibbs [ Images ] admitted to the King Commission of Inquiry, set up in South Africa, that they had conspired to fix matches for cash.
"We need to interrogate Sajeev Chawla to unravel the whole truth behind match-fixing," Chand said.
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Kambli, who scored 1084 runs in 17 Tests and 2477 runs in 104 ODIs for India, said he was suspicious of then captain Mohammed Azharuddin's decision to field first in the semifinal which was eventually awarded to Sri Lanka because of crowd problem.
Kambli claims that his suspicion arose due to Mohammed Azharuddin's decision to field first even though it was unanimously decided that the team would bat after winning the toss.
"I will never forget the 1996 match because my career ended after this and I was dropped from the team. I was stunned by India's decision to field," Kambli said while participating in a news channel debate on ex-chief of ICC anti-corruption unit Paul Condon's statement that in the 90s and in the following years all of cricket's leading countries were involved in fixing major matches.
"I was standing on one side and on the other end my fellow batsman was telling me that we would chase the target. However, soon after they quickly got out one by one. I don't know what transpired.
"Something was definitely amiss. However, I was not given a chance to speak and was dropped soon after. Our team manager at that time Ajit Wadekar was aware of everything. He had even written an article afterwards that Vinod Kambli had been made a scapegoat," he said.
Kambli said he was shocked when it came to know that they have to field when everybody was mentally prepared to bat.
"We had been playing well during the entire World Cup and even defeated the likes of WestIndies and Pakistan to reach the semifinal. Our openers were all set to bat, however, at the nick of time, we learnt we had to field. I got a huge shock after learning this," he said.
"I cried because I thought I was robbed of a chance to do it for my country. The entire team hugged me. Most of us were crying, he recalled. It was not only Tendulkar and other cricketers' dream to win the Cup but mine too," he added.
Sri Lanka won the first semifinal over India at the Eden Gardens when chasing a total of 251 for 8, the hosts slumped to 120 for 8 in the 35th over and that led to crowd disturbance.
The players left the field for 20 minutes in an attempt to quiet the crowd. When the players returned for play, more bottles were thrown onto the field, forcing Match referee Clive Lloyd to award the match to Sri Lanka, the first default ever in Test or one-day international.
New Delhi, November 17, 2011
Last Updated: 10:27 IST(18/11/2011)
The match was eventually abandoned and awarded to
Ajit Wadekar, who was the team manager then, said the game was clean. Indian skipper Mohammad Azharuddin surprisingly chose to bowl first. "I'll never forget the match because my career ended after it. I was stunned by the decision to field," Kambli said. "I was standing on one side and on the other end my fellow batsman was telling me that we would chase the target," the channel quoted the retired player as saying. "However, soon after they quickly got out one by one. I don't know what transpired."
"Something was definitely amiss. However, I was not given a chance to speak and was dropped soon after. Our team manager at that time, Wadekar, was aware of everything."
"I did not even think there was anything suspicious in that loss. It was purely because we misread the wicket and were slightly overconfident after beating Pakistan in the quarterfinal," Wadekar told HT.
"Why did he wake up suddenly after 15 years? During my four-and-half year stint (with the national team), I used to frequently have dinner with Vinod. Had he told me about his suspicions then, I would have requested the board to probe the matter."
Kambli, who watched the batsmen fall like ninepins, said it's decided in the team meeting that India would bat first if they won the toss.
Wadekar said: "During the team meeting, only (Navjot Singh) Sidhu and I felt the wicket would deteriorate and that we should bat first. However, a majority of the bunch felt a wicket couldn't deteriorate much.
The BCCI secretary Sanjay Jagdale declined to respond to Kambli's allegations.
Mohammad Azharuddin
Mohammad Azharuddin | ||||
This file is a candidate for speedy deletion. It may be deleted after Monday, 31 October 2011. | ||||
Personal information | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Full name | Mohammad Azharuddin | |||
Born | 8 February 1963 Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India | |||
Nickname | Ajju Azzu Bhai.[1] | |||
Batting style | Right-handed batsman | |||
Bowling style | Right-arm medium | |||
Role | Batsman | |||
International information | ||||
National side | India | |||
Test debut(cap 169) | 30 December 1984 v England | |||
Last Test | 2 March 2000 v South Africa | |||
ODI debut (cap 51) | 20 January 1985 v England | |||
Last ODI | 3 June 2000 v Pakistan | |||
Domestic team information | ||||
Years | Team | |||
1981–2000 | Hyderabad | |||
1983–2000 | South Zone | |||
1991–1994 | Derbyshire | |||
Career statistics | ||||
Competition | Test | ODI | FC | LA |
Matches | 99 | 334 | 229 | 433 |
Runs scored | 6,216 | 9,378 | 15,855 | 12,941 |
Batting average | 45.03 | 36.92 | 51.98 | 39.33 |
100s/50s | 22/21 | 7/58 | 54/74 | 11/85 |
Top score | 199 | 153* | 226 | 161* |
Balls bowled | 13 | 552 | 1,432 | 827 |
Wickets | 0 | 12 | 17 | 15 |
Bowling average | – | 39.91 | 46.23 | 47.26 |
5 wickets in innings | – | 0 | 0 | 0 |
10 wickets in match | – | n/a | 0 | n/a |
Best bowling | 0/4 | 3/19 | 3/36 | 3/19 |
Catches/stumpings | 105/– | 156/– | 220/– | 200/– |
Source: CricketArchive, 13 February 2009 |
Mohammad Azharuddin pronunciation (help·info) (Telugu: ముహమ్మద్ అజహరుద్దీన్, Urdu:محمد اظہرالدین ) (born 8 February 1963, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh) also known as Azhar, is an Indian politician and former cricketer. He was an accomplished batsman and captained the Indian cricket team for much of the 1990s, until his involvement in a match-fixing scandal forced him into retirement.[2] A member of the Indian National Congress, Azharuddin won election from the Moradabad constituency of Uttar Pradesh to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India.
In his prime, he had a graceful, fluid batting style, comparable to that of his English contemporary, David Gower and Australian batsman Greg Chappell. The wrist flick was his most characteristic shot and he fared best against spinners. The grace and fluidity of his wrist once prompted John Woodcock, a noted cricket writer, to say, "It's no use asking an Englishman to bat like Mohammad Azharuddin. For, it would be like expecting a greyhound to win the London Derby!" [1] Former Indian captain and International umpireVenkataraghavan said that "Azharuddin had the best wrists in the game, but Tendulkar isn't too far behind" while praising Sachin Tendulkar. [2]. In Oct 2010, Sri Lankan legendMuralitharan called him one of the best players in cricket on par with Sachin Tendulkar. [3]
Contents[hide] |
[edit]Early life
Azhar, as he is popularly known, grew up in Hyderabad and attended a Catholic convent boys school All Saints High School in Hyderabad. Indian cricketers such as Venkatapathy Raju and Noel David have also attended the same school.
[edit]Family and Personal life
Azharuddin is married to former Miss India turned actress Sangeeta Bijlani. This is his second marriage, after he divorced his first wife Naureen, with whom he had two sons, Asad and Ayaz. His son Ayaz, aged 19 years, died on 16 September 2011.
[edit]International career
[edit]Highlights
Azhar scored a final total of 22 centuries in Test cricket at an average of 45, and 7 in ODIs at an average of 37. He has the unique distinction of scoring a century in each of his first three Tests - a feat unmatched till date. An excellent fielder, he took 156 catches in ODI cricket which was a world record until Mahela Jayawardene surpassed him. He held world records for maximum ODI runs and fastest ODI hundred. He also scored centuries in his first and last Test.He was known for Flick with wrist shot.
During India's 1990 Test series in England, came in to bat when his team was facing the prospect of following on and scored an aggressive century in just 87 balls. Many regard this as his best innings ever. India was saved from the follow on but lost the match and the series.
He was given out LBW for 199 in a Test match against Sri Lanka and it was his highest Test score.
Eden Gardens, Kolkata proved to be happy hunting ground for Azhar where he scored 5 centuries in 7 Tests at a whopping average of 107.50
In 1991 he was named Wisden Cricketer of the Year and was for many years an inspirational figure in the Indian team with his athletic fielding and leadership.
Azhar eventually stranded one short of 100 Tests milestone following unfortunate events involving match fixing, that led to his retirement.
[edit]Captaincy
Azharuddin was captain of the Indian team for most of the 1990s. Statistically he is one of India's most successful captains. He won 103 ODI matches as the captain of the Indian team, which is still an Indian record. His 14 Test Match wins as captain, was a record until it was bettered by Sourav Ganguly.
[edit]Match fixing scandal
Towards the end of his career Azharuddin was accused of match-fixing;[4] South African captain Hansie Cronje in his confession for match-fixing had indicated that Azharuddin was the one to introduce him to the bookies.[5] India's premier investigating agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation conducted an investigation & published a report.[2]
Then he admitted to fixing three ODI matches,[6] and this led the BCCI to ban him from the game of cricket for life in 2000. The BCCI lifted the ban on Azharuddin in 2006 and even honoured him along with other Indian Test captains in a ceremony in Mumbai during the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy. The ICC, however, claimed that it alone had the right to revoke the ban despite playing no role in handing out the original ban.
In one of his interviews, he claimed that he was being targeted because he was from a minority community. [7] However, this statement backfired badly and invited severe criticism from all parts of the country, including prominent minority community organisations in India. Ultimately, Azharuddin had to apologise publicly and retract his statements.[citation needed]}
[edit]Death of his son
On 16th of September, 2011 Azharuddin's son Ayazuddin (aged 19) died at the Apollo Hospital, Hyderabad. He sustained critical injuries when the Suzuki GSX-R1000 motorcylce he was riding skidded off the road at Puppalguda on Outer Ring Road on 11th of September. Ayazuddin's cousin, Ajmal-ur-Rahman (16) who was riding pillion, was declared brought dead to the hospital. His funeral prayer offered at the historic Mecca Masjid attended by thousands of people. He was laid to rest at the Riyasath Nagar graveyard, Phisalbanda. Ayazuddin was the younger of the two sons of Azharuddin from his first wife Naureen, whom he divorced to marry former Miss India and actress Sangeeta Bijlani.
[edit]Political career
Azhruddin formally joined the Indian National Congress party on February 19, 2009. He contested the Indian general election, 2009 fromMoradabad in western Uttar Pradesh. He won the elections as a candidate of Indian National Congress party by defeating his nearest BJPrival Sarvesh Kumar Singh with a margin of more than 50,000 votes. He has promised to construct a University and a Stadium as well in Moradabad. He has also promised to improve the city's electricity problem[8]
[edit]Test statistics
[edit]By opponent
Australia
- 780 runs at 39.00 with 2 hundreds
England
- 1278 runs at 58.09 with 6 hundreds
New Zealand
- 796 runs at 61.23 with 2 hundreds
Pakistan
- 769 runs at 40.47 with 3 hundreds
South Africa
- 779 runs at 41.00 with 4 hundreds
Sri Lanka
- 1215 runs at 55.23 with 5 hundreds
West Indies
- 539 runs at 28.37 with 0 hundreds
Zimbabwe
- 59 runs at 14.75 with 0 hundreds
Total
- 6215 runs at 45.04 with 22 hundreds
[edit]List of centuries
[edit]See also
[edit]References
- ^ .http://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/article1498691.ece
- ^ a b "cricket channel - The CBI Report, in full". rediff.com. Retrieved 2010-12-21.
- ^ http://www.cricindian.com/news/sachin-azharuddin-sidhu-muralis-top-10-batsmen
- ^ "BBC SPORT | CORRUPTION IN CRICKET | Azharuddin hit with life ban". BBC News. 2000-12-05. Retrieved 2010-12-21.
- ^ "cricket channel - The CBI Report, in full". rediff.com. 2000-11-01. Retrieved 2010-12-21.
- ^ "Azharuddin hit with life ban". BBC News. 5 December 2000. Retrieved 27 March 2010.
- ^ Magazine, Pradeep. "Azharuddin and 4 Others Are Punished for Cricket Match Fixing : Former India Captain Banned", The New York Times, December 6, 2000, accessed March 30, 2011.
- ^ "Congress wins 21 seats in Uttar Pradesh, stumps rivals". The Economic Times. 16 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-16.
[edit]External links
- Player profile: Mohammad Azharuddin from ESPNcricinfo
- Player Profile: Mohammad Azharuddin from CricketArchive
- IBN Live
- Azhar dating badminton player Jwala Gutta
Preceded by Krishnamachari Srikkanth | Indian National Test Cricket Captain 1989/90 - 1996 | Succeeded by Sachin Tendulkar |
Preceded by Sachin Tendulkar | Indian National Test Cricket Captain 1997/98 - 1998/99 | Succeeded by Sachin Tendulkar |
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- World Cup cricketers of India
- Derbyshire cricketers
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- Wisden Cricketers of the Year
- Telugu people
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- 1963 births
- Living people
- Recipients of the Arjuna Award
- 15th Lok Sabha members
- Osmania University alumni
- Indian sportsperson–politicians
- Indian Sunni Muslims
Players Involved | CBI Match Fixing Report |
MOHD AZHARUDDIN
Joining the State Bank of India as a clerk in 1983, Mohd Azharuddin got quick promotions because of his cricket. He is at present a scale-IV officer, working as Chief Manager and PRO, State Bank of India, Hyderabad. Azharuddin admits his very close relationship with Ajay Sharma, and the intimacy developed since both of them used to be roommates whenever they played.
On being confronted with telephone print-outs of Ajay Sharma which disclose contacts only just before or during cricket matches, he stated that Ajay Sharma had always been his well-wisher for may years and he also used to bring him bats during matches since it brought him good luck.
Azharuddin admitted on further questioning that he was first introduced to M.K. Gupta @ MK by Ajay Sharma sometime in 1995, at Hotel Taj Palace, New Delhi. Ajay Sharma and MK had been approaching him to under perform in some matches for a consideration. Mukesh Gupta had offered him a sum of Rs. 1.25 crore, but the deal did not materialise. He accepted that he had taken money on some occasions from MK but did not under perform in most of the matches in which he had taken money. He stated that the Titan Cup match between India and South Africa at Rajkot in 1996 was fixed through Mukesh Gupta, and revealed that Ajay Jadeja and Nayan Mongia were also involved along with him. A match in Pepsi Asia Cup in Sri Lanka in 1997 was also fixed through MK. He accepted that he had introduced Mukesh Kumar Gupta to Hansie Cronje at Kanpur in 1996.
On being asked about Ajay Gupta and Ameesh Gupta whose cell phone numbers figured frequently in his telephone print-out, he stated that he had met Ajay Gupta and his associates sometime in 1998 through Ajay Sharma. He had a letter of intent for a petrol pump issued by the Ministry of Petroleum in 1996 which was under litigation and wanted to seek Ajay Gupta's help.
On being asked whether Ameesh Guptas s/o Gyan Chand Gupta paid for his shopping at Harrods in London in 1999 during the World Cup, he stated that he had made some purchases and Ameesh Gupta had paid for the same.
On further questioning, he accepted that Ajay Gupta and his associates had approached him sometime to fix matches. He does not remember how much money he had received from them. The Pepsi Cup match between India and Pakistan at Jaipur in 1999 was fixed through them and Jadeja and Nayan Mongia were also involved with him in the deal. He was paid around Rs.10 lacs after that match by some unknown person on behalf on Guptas. Azhar admitted that Ameesh Gupta had given him mobile phone -98-111- 50860-through which he used to contact him during matches.
On being asked whether he had met Dawood Ibrahim, he stated that he had seen him a few times in Sharjah where Dawood Ibrahim used to be present during cricket matches. He denied having any telephonic conversation with him. On being asked whether he had spoken to Abu Salem, he stated that Abu Salem had rung him up on a couple of occasions and requested him to fix some matches but he had refused.
On being asked about Hamid Banjo Cassim of South Africa, Azhar accepted that he had met him whenever he visited South Africa. On being asked about Pappu Bhutani, he stated that he knew him but he had not purchased any expensive watch from him. Azhar also stated that he presented a Rolex watch costing around Rs.75, 000/- to Ajit Wadekar as a token of appreciation since Ajit Wadekar always used to guide him when he was the Coach of Indian team.
On being asked about the alleged offer made by Kapil Dev to Manoj Prabakar in Singer Cup, 1994, he stated that Manoj Prabhakar never informed him about this alleged offer and he came to know of this only through newspapers recently. About the India-West Indies one-day match at Kanpur in 1994 where Manoj Prabhakar and Nayan Mongia had batted slowly, he stated that there were no instructions from the dressing room that they should bat slowly and he could not comprehend the reasons behind such tactics.
ANALYSIS OF EVIDENCE
(Detailed discussion of evidence (oral and documentary) against player)
It is clear that Azharuddin contributed substantially towards the expanding bookie/player nexus in Indian cricket. The inquiry has disclosed that he received large sums of money from the betting syndicates to 'fix' matches. There is also evidence which discloses that he roped in other players also to fix matches, which resulted in this malaise making further inroads into Indian cricket.
The evidence against Azharuddin, which is discussed next, clearly establishes the fact that he took money from bookies/punters to fix cricket matches and also the fact that the 'underworld' had approached him to fix matches for them. Sonia Gandhi Chhota Rajan Sushmita Sen Mohammed Azharuddin Astrologer Uma Shankar Shukla will be providing a weekly health guide for the Zodiac signs Mukesh Kumar Gupta has stated that he met Azharuddin sometime in 1995 through Ajay Sharma at Hotel Taj Palace, New Delhi. He paid a sum of Rs 50 lakh as 'advance' with an arrangement that this amount would be adjusted against the matches Azharuddin would 'do' for MK.
Ajay Sharma, in his statement, has corroborated that he introduced Azharuddin to Mukesh Kumar Gupta since Azharuddin wanted somebody to finance some 'fashion show' and 'charity matches'. However, Ajay Sharma has further stated that Azharuddin had told him that MK wanted him (Azharuddin) to 'do' some matches for him and Ajay Sharma had told Azharuddin that he could consider the proposal. Ajay Sharma adds that Azharuddin had telephonically confirmed to him that he had received money from MK.
Azharuddin, in his statement, has admitted meeting MK through Ajay Sharma. He has further stated that MK had offered Rs 1.25 crore but the deal did not materialise. However, the statement of MK corroborated by Ajay Sharma clearly indicates that Azharuddin was paid at least Rs 50 lakh initially by MK to 'fix' matches. MK has further stated that Azharuddin had specially agreed to 'do' some matches during the Titan Cup series in 1996. But the Titan Cup Final did not turn out as arranged with Azharuddin.
According to MK, after the Titan Cup Final, he, along with Ajay Sharma, went to Hyderabad and met Azharuddin to ask him to make up for the 'losses' suffered by him during the Titan Cup. Ajay Sharma has corroborated this visit to Hyderabad and also the fact that, at this meeting, Azharuddin had agreed to make up the losses suffered by MK, in future matches. MK adds that Azharuddin then gave him 'information' about two Tests at Ahmedabad and Calcutta in the 1996 series against South Africa which helped him, partially recover his losses. Azharuddin, in his statement, has accepted receiving money from MK to fix some matches, but has stated that he 'did' only two matches for him - Titan Cup match in 1996 at Rajkot and 'some' match in Pepsi Asia Cup in Sri Lanka, 1997. This 'admission' of Azhar that he 'did' only two matches for MK during this period appears a dilution of the actual facts in the context of the amount of money he had received from MK.
MK has stated that he was introduced to Dr Ali Irani by Azharuddin during the Ahemdabad Test against South Africa in 1996. Dr Ali Irani has corroborated this but stated that MK was introduced to him as 'John'. MK is categorical that some payments to Azharuddin were made through Dr Irani. This fact has been accepted by Dr Ali Irani, who has also stated that he used to receive a commission of Rs 25,000- to 50,000- from Azharuddin for receiving such payments which were running into lakhs, on each occasion. The payment of money through Dr Irani has been further corroborated by the statement of Anil Steel, the Bombay Bookie and an associate of MK, who has stated that, on two occasions, he made payments of around Rs. 20-25 lakh each to Dr Irani and Nanawati Hospital, on behalf of MK.
MK has further stated that Azharuddin had introduced Hansie Cronje to him during the third Test between India and South Africa at Kanpur, 1996. Azharuddin has admitted this fact. Further, there is also documentary proof in the form of hotel records which show that MK had stayed at Hotel Landmark, Kanpur, where both the teams were staying during the Test. MK has further stated that in the Sahara Cup, 1997, at Toronto, Sangeeta Bijlani used to provide him 'information' through cell phone which, however, generally proved to be incorrect. Ajay Sharma has said that he introduced Azharuddin to Ajay Gupta and associates sometime in 1998 at Hotel Taj Palace, New Delhi. This fact is further corroborated by the statement of Sanjay Anand.
Azharuddin has accepted that he met Ajay Gupta to seek his help in getting a petrol outlet allotted at Bangalore, but later on admitted that Ajay Gupta had approached him to 'fix' some matches. Ajay Sharma has stated that, on one occasion, he had collected Rs 15 lakh from Ajay Gupta on Azharuddin's behalf and deposited the money in the locker of Azharuddin at Hotel Taj Palace through the then Food and Beverages Manager, Anil Saxena. This has been further corroborated by Anil Saxena, the then Food and Beverages Manager at Taj Palace Hotel, New Delhi, who used to handle Azharuddin's locker in his absence.
Nishit Goel, cousin of Ajay Gupta, has stated that he had 'heard' that Azharuddin was paid around Rs 25 lakh by the Guptas initially. Azharuddin, however, does not remember how much money was paid by the Guptas to him to 'fix' matches. The evidence regarding Azharuddin possessing a locker at Hotel Taj Palace, New Delhi is further strengthened by the statement of MK who has stated that he had 'recovered' Rs 30 lakh from that locker through Anil Saxena and Ajay Sharma, when matches did not turn out as arranged with Azharuddin after the Sahara Cup in 1997. The nexus between Azharuddin and Ajay Gupta is further corroborated through their cell-phone print outs which disclose frequent calls between Azharuddin and Ajay Gupta/ Ameesh Gupta especially during the matches. For example, Azharuddin made a call on 6.3.2000 to Ajay Gupta.
This was the last day of India-South Africa Test Match at Bangalore. Similarly, Azharuddin made a call on 19.3.2000 to Ajay Gupta. This was on the day of India-South Africa One Day International at Nagpur (he was not in the team). Azharuddin has in his statement accepted that he was provided a cell-phone - 9811150860 by the Guptas. Further, Azharuddin has also accepted that Ameesh Gupta paid for his shopping at "Harrods", London in 1999 during the World Cup. There is more documentary evidence in the form of hotel bills paid by Nishit Goel for Azharuddin's stay at Hotel Taj Palace on two occasions - on 2.2.200 and 8.2.2000. The total amount of money paid by Nishit Goel to Hotel Taj on the aforesaid occasions is around Rs 37,000.
Finally, Azharuddin in his statement, has specifically recalled that he 'did' the match between India and Pakistan at Jaipur for the Guptas during the Pepsi Cup Match, 1999, after which he received around Rs 10 lakh from an 'unknown' person, on behalf of Guptas. However, in view of the large amount of money Azhar has received from Guptas and the 'hospitality' he has enjoyed though them it is very difficult to believe that he 'did' only one match for them. Azharuddin has also stated during his examination that Abu Salem had rung him up on a couple of occasions to fix matches but he had refused. Ali Irani, in his statement, has said that Azharuddin had told him once that "he was 'doing' matches for Anees Ibrahim and hence, he cannot do with anyone else."
CBI Report on - Dr. Ali Irani | Ajay Jadeja | Ajay Sharma | Manoj Prabhakar | Nayan Mongia CBI Match Fixing Report |
http://www.yehhaicricket.com/CBI/players/MAzharuddin.html
Players Involved | CBI Match Fixing Report |
Ajay Jadeja stated that he knew Rajesh Kalra and Kishan Kumar since they regularly come to the gym at Hotel Park Royal which is also frequented by Jadeja. He denied any knowledge about their being punters. On being asked about Rattan Mehta was a very good friend and had known him for the past many years. He also stated that he had gone to his restaurant many times and maintained close contacts with Rattan Mehta.
When asked whether he knew that Rattan Mehta was also involved in betting and match-fixing, he stated that he had no knowledge of such activities and also never bothered to find out. On being asked whether he knew that Rattan Mehta's sister Mona Mehta was arrested for betting on cricket matches during the World Cup, 1999 by Delhi police, he stated that he had not heard of such an incident. On being asked whether he knew Mukesh Kumar Gupta @ M K, he stated that he had never met him but all that he knew was that M K stayed next to Nikhil Chopra's house in Defence Colony. He also denied that he went to Mukesh Gupta's house at Defence Colony along with a girl and Ajay Sharma sometime in 1996. He, however, stated that since he met so many people he cannot remember all of them. He stated that he did not remember whether he received Rs 50, 000 from M K.
On being asked whether he was involved in match-fixing with Mohd. Azharuddin, he denied the same. On being asked whether he knew Uttam Chand, a bookie/ punter of Chennai, he stated that he did not know him. On being confronted with Uttam Chand's cell phone printout, which disclosed very frequent telephonic contact between both of them just before or during cricket matches, he stated that he recognised Uttam Chand's cell phone number but knew him as 'Gupta'. He did not know how Uttam Chand got his telephone number. Jadeja stated that Uttam Chand used to ring him up often and tell him that if he did not talk to him, he would run into bad luck and because of superstition, he used to return his call.
On being asked whether he knew that Uttam Chand was a bookie, he stated that he had an inkling to that effect due to the nature of conversation Uttam Chand used to have with him. On being asked why he did not discontinue his association with Uttam Chand after that, he said that he could not explain this. Ajay Jadeja also denied that he provided any information to Uttam Chand about cricket matches and denied receiving any money from Uttam Chand. Finally, on being asked about his association with persons like Rajesh Kalra, Kishan Kumar, Rattan Mehta and Uttam Chand who are all bookies/ punters, Jadeja stated that he did not want to discuss these things. He merely said that he had made certain mistakes in his career and was ready to pay the price for it.
ANALYSIS OF EVIDENCE
(Detailed discussion of evidence (oral and documentary) against player)
Ajay Jadeja has close relations with a number of bookies/punters, including Rajesh Kalra, Rattan Mehta, Uttam Chand, Krishan Kumar (implicated in the Hansie Cronje case) and Ajay Gupta. He has also given "judgement" and information" regarding cricket matches to Uttam Chand and Rattan Mehta. It has emerged in the enquiry that Jadeja met MK in 1996 and offered to "do" matches for him. As he could not promise the help of other players except one, the deal did not materialise.
Both MK Gupta and Uttam Chand have stated that they paid money to Ajay Jadeja. At the insistence of MK, Ajay Sharma introduced Ajay Jadeja to MK in 1996. MK has stated that Jadeja came to his house along with Ajay Sharma and a girl and offered to "do" matches for him. However, no deal could be struck as Jadeja was only offering his services along with those of Mongia. MK has further stated that he paid a sum of Rs. 50,000/- during this meeting. Ajay Sharma has corroborated the statement of MK and has further stated that of the Rs. 50,000/- paid by MK, Jadeja kept Rs. 32,000/- himself to purchase a cell phone and gave remaining Rs. 18000/- to him.
On the other hand, Jadeja has state that he does not remember meeting ML, since he had met so many people in his life. He has also denied having received Rs. 50,000/- from MK. Anil Steel, a bookie form Bonbay has also stated that he once saw Jadeja in the hotel room of MK in Calcutta during the inaugural ceremony of the World Cup Cricket, 1996. During the enquiry, a print-out of the cell phone number 98100 34882 of Jadeja for the period from 15.9.99 to 30.4.2000 was taken and studied.
A scrutiny of the print-out has disclosed that Jadeja had made and received tele calls in varying numbers from and to Rajesh Kalra, a punter, rattan Mehta, a big time punter and Krishan Kumar (implicated in the Hansie Cronje case). When questioned about these contacts, Jadeja stated that he knew Kalra as they visited the same Gym at Hotel Park Royal. Jadeja, however, denied that he ever discussed cricket with Kalra or passed on any info about cricket matches to him.
Jadeja accepts that he knows Krishan Kumar, but he did not have any knowledge that he was a punter. He admits that he is very close to Rattan Mehta but denies that he knew Rattan Mehta was a big-time punter. Jadeja has specifically denied that he fixed matches for Rattan Mehta. Rattan in his examination supported the statement of Jadeja about being close to him and admitted taking Jadeja's 'judgement' on certain matches. It is, however, difficult to accept Jadeja's statement that he did not know that Rattan was a big time punter, given his accepted closeness to Rattan Mehta.
Jadeja's statement is further suspect in the light of the statement of Pawan Puri, a punter of on a flight from Mumbai to Delhi during which they discussed cricket matches and Jadeja had at that time told him that he had "done" matches for rattan Mehta during the India, 'India-A and India -B, Challenger Trophy in Feb, 2000. (Ajay Jadeja was the Captain of Indai- B Team which lost both matches.) Azhar, during his examination, stated that in the Titan Cup Series in 1996, he had "made" matches for MK and that Jadeja and Mongia wre also involved with him.
In his statement, Dr. Ali Irani has also stated that he had absolutely no doubt about the involvement of Jadeja with Azhar, and that in 1996, during a one-day match, Jadeja had also told him not to talk about "such thing" to him as he was no longer onto it. Dr Ali Irani has further stated that he suspected that Ajay Jadeja made this statement to him, because by that time Jadeja probably knew that Azharuddin had confided to him (Dr Ali Irani) about match-fixing.
Another major bookie/punter Uttam Chand, during his examination, has stated that he used to get "information" regarding various aspects of the match from Jadeja in matches in which India was playing. On the basis of information provided by Jadeja, he used to further place bets.
Uttam Chand has also disclosed that he paid a sum of Rs 1 lakh initially at the time when he was introduced to Ajay Jadeja at a function in Hotel Chola Sheraton in Chennai, and later he paid a sum of Rs 5 lakhs through "hawala" transfer when Ajay Jadeja was in Mumbai during a match. Ajay Jadeja has denied that he received any money from Uttam Chand. He has also stated that initially he only thought that Uttam Chand was his "fan" and used to talk to him in order to avoid the nuisance of continuous calls from him. Jadeja has further stated that, after some time, he did get an inkling that Uttam Chand was a bookie. On being asked as to why he continued talking to Uttam Chand even after coming to know that he was a bookie, Jadeja could not provide a satisfactory answer.
The assertion of Jadeja that often he would talk to Uttam Chand only to get rid of the nuisance of continuous telephone calls is difficult to accept, as Jadeja could very easily have firmly told Uttam Chand not to ring him up. He could also have declined to take any calls from Uttam Chand. On the contrary, he not only accepted calls from Uttam Chand and talked to him for minutes, but also, on occasions, returned the call of Uttam Chand. The timings of the call between Uttam Chand and Jadeja also suggest great familiarity between the two as there have been a number of calls around midnight. It seems peculiar as to why Jadeja should be talking to a bookie/punter around midnight, specially when he is scheduled to play a match the next morning.
It is also of interest that Uttam Chand and Jadeja have spoken to each other, only a day prior to a match or on the day of the match. There have been no calls between them during a gap between two series or even during a gap in matches during a particular series. The connection between Uttam Chand and Jadeja is, therefore, not innocent. The connection between the two becomes further suspect as telephone calls in the print-out of Uttam Chand's cell phone no 98400 37700 show that on occasions after talking to Jadeja he has spoken to well-known bookies such as Shobhan Mehta of Mumbai and Hans Kumar Jain of Delhi, etc.
A random sample of cell phone calls between Jadeja and Uttam Chand are reproduced below as an illustration. Many of the calls made by Uttam Chand to Jadeja are of short duration and these are probably messages left in the voice mail:
1. 10.101999 - 2 calls from Uttam Chand to Jadeja. They were made on the first day of 1st Test Match between India and New Zealand at Mohali.
2. 11.10.1999 - 8 calls from Uttam Chand to Jadeja. These were made on the 2nd day of the Mohali Test Match.
3. 12.10.1999 - 23 calls from Uttam Chand on the third day of the Test Match.
4. 13.10.1999 - 46 calls from Uttam Chand on the fourth day of the Test Match.
5. 14.10.1999 - 46 calls from Uttam Chand on the last day of the Mohali Test Match.
6. 28.10.1999 - 24 calls from Uttam Chand. This was one day prior to the Third Test Match between India-New Zealand at Ahmedabad.
7. 29.10.1999 - 13 calls from Uttam Chand. This was the first day of the 3rd Test Match.
8. 30.10.1999 - 62 calls from Uttam Chand on the 2nd day of the Test Match.
9. 31.10.1999 - 30 calls from Uttam Chand. This was the third day of the Test Match.
10. 01.11.1999 - 50 calls from Uttam Chand on the 4th day of the Test Match.
11. 02.11.1999 - 14 calls from Uttam Chand on the last day of the Test Match.
12. 13.11.1999 - 48 calls from Uttam Chand to Jadeja and 1 call from Jadeja to Uttam Chand. This was one day prior to the India-New Zealand one-dayer at Guwahati.
13. 14.11.1999 - 5 calls from Uttam Chand on the day of Guwahati one-dayer.
14. 16.11.1999 - 55 calls from Uttam Chand to Jadeja and 1 from Jadeja to Uttam Chand one day prior to the 5th one-dayer between India and New Zealand at Delhi.
15. 11.3.2000 - Uttam Chand has made 28 calls. This was one day prior to the one-dayer between India-South Africa at Jamshedpur.
16. 12.3.2000 - Uttam Chand has made 3 calls on the day of the Jamshedpur one-dayer.
The evidence against Ajay Jadeja clearly establishes that he has been close to a number of bookies/punters and has provided them "information" about cricket matches on payment of money. However, it has to be surmised that no bookie/punter will pay money for "information", which is very easily available on television and the word is used as a subterfuge for underperforming and match-fixing.
Ajay Jadeja was extremely intransigent during his examination, and, even when confronted with evidence, issued bland denials.
CBI Report on - Dr. Ali Irani | Ajay Sharma | Mohd. Azharuddin | Manoj Prabhakar | Nayan Mongia |
http://www.yehhaicricket.com/CBI/players/AjayJadeja.html
Betting controversies in cricket
Cricket has had a number of controversies relating to players being involved with the betting aspects of the game. In particular, numerous players have been approached by bookmakers and bribed to, throw matches, aspects of matches (e.g. the toss) or provide other information.
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[edit]1999-2000 India-South Africa match fixing scandal
In 2000, the Delhi police intercepted a conversation between a blacklisted bookie and the South African cricket captain Hansie Cronje in which they learnt that Cronje accepted money to throw matches.[1][2] The South African government refused to allow any of its players to face the Indian investigation unit. A court of inquiry was set up and Cronje admitted to throwing matches. He was immediately banned from all cricket. He also named Saleem Malik (Pakistan), Mohammed Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja (India).[3] Jadeja was banned for 4 years. They too were banned from all cricket. As a kingpin, Cronje exposed the dark side of betting, however with his untimely death in 2002 most of his sources also have escaped law enforcement agencies. Two South African cricketers, Herschelle Gibbs and Nicky Boje, were also listed as wanted by the Delhi police for their role in the match fixing saga.
[edit]Other controversies
Among the scandals were Mark Waugh and Shane Warne's fines from the Australian Cricket Board for offering information about the weather and pitch information to "John the bookmaker".[4] The report by Rob O'Regan QC, concluded that cricketers were not fully informed about the dangers of interacting with bookmakers, and although no further punishment could be given to either Waugh or Warne, in the future players should be punished by not only fines, but also by suspensions.[5]
The ICC was slow to react, but did eventually in 2000 set up an Anti-Corruption and Security Unit headed by Sir Paul Condon, former head of London's Metropolitan Police. It claims to have reduced corruption in cricket to a 'reducible minimum'.
During the 4th Test of 2010 Pakistani tour of England, English newspaper News of the World published a story with allegations that Mazhar Majeed and some of the Pakistani players were involved in spot fixing.[6][7]
[edit]In popular culture
- The 2008 novel Raffles and the Match-Fixing Syndicate, by Adam Corres, which places E.W.Hornung's A.J.Raffles, 'the gentleman thief' into the world of cricket match-fixing. This black humour comedy includes speculation on the infamous Hansie Cronje and Bob Woolmer incidents.
- The 2009 Hindi film, 99, starring Kunal Khemu, Boman Irani, Soha Ali Khan and Cyrus Broacha, is set in the year 1999, with the India-South Africa match fixing controversy as the backdrop.
- The 2008 Hindi film, Jannat, directed by Kunal Deshmukh and starring Emran Hashmi, Sonal Chauhan and Javed Sheikh is also based on Match fixing.
[edit]See also
[edit]References
- ^ It's Just Not Cricket
- ^ Two more cricket bookies absconding after raids
- ^ 'Azharuddin fixed matches for bookie M K Gupta...'
- ^ "Findings of the O'Regan Player Conduct Inquiry". February 24, 1999. Retrieved 2006-11-09.
- ^ "ACB Player Conduct Inquiry Report". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
- ^ "Our team will throw two ODIs".
- ^ "'Pak players were in touch with bookies during T20 WC'".
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