The ICC are looking into The Sun’s sting operation, where bookmakers allegedly tried to spot-fix the third Ashes Test
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The International Cricket Council (ICC) has launched an investigation after the third Ashes Test between Australia and England in Perth was allegedly targeted by bookmakers.
The ICC added that criminal charges may arise after The Sun conducted a sting operation, in which two men asked their undercover reporters for £140,000 (US$187,000) to “spot fix” certain parts of the third Test, such as the number of runs scored in an over.
None of the players taking part in the series were singled out in the ICC’s statement.
“It is obviously very early stages and our priority on receiving everything from The Sun late last night was to consider whether the integrity of the third Ashes Test had been compromised,” ICC’s general manager of anti-corruption Alex Marshall said. “There is no evidence, either from The Sun or via our own intelligence, to suggest the current Test match has been corrupted. At this stage of the investigation, there is no indication that any players in this Test have been in contact with the alleged fixers.
“We are now working through the rest of the information from The Sun as part of what will be a wide-ranging investigation and we will map this against our own existing intelligence and live investigations to look for any corroboration or cross over. We are taking these allegations very seriously and will follow the correct processes of a thorough investigation. We will look for clear and usable evidence that proves or disproves the allegations made. This will include looking for corroboration, speaking to key witnesses and securing all relevant evidential material.
“This will not be concluded overnight and we will be working with ACU colleagues from Member countries to investigate every single allegation in full. We will not be making any comment in relation to the identity of any individual names in the dossier whilst this investigation is ongoing.”
“The allegations are wide ranging and relate to various forms cricket in several countries, including T20 tournaments. We will look closely at all the information as part of our investigation. We ask anyone with information about these allegations to get in touch with the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit via contactacu@icc-cricket.com.”
Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland denied that the third Test had been corrupted, but confirmed that the board will cooperate with the ICC’s investigation.
“What we heard … is there’s no evidence, substance or justification based on the dossier of information the ICC has received from the news outlet or based on ICC intelligence from previous investigations,” Sutherland said. “There’s no substance to these allegations or justification to suspect that this Test match or indeed the Ashes series as a whole is subject to corrupt activities.
“He also went on to say that there’s no evidence, substance or justification to suggest that any player from either side or match official from the ICC or Cricket Australia or the ECB are in any way under suspicion or have been contacted by alleged fixers. To that extent I know I speak from the ECB’s perspective and Cricket Australia’s perspective it’s important for everyone to understand that our players are educated on a regular basis about the risks of corruption in our game.
“They are fully aware and understanding of their obligations under contract and under the ICC code to make the ICC or Cricket Australia or the ECB aware of any suspicious activity or any approaches that they may have. We have absolute confidence in our players and our team officials and others involved in the game to say there is nothing to suggest based on what we’ve heard from Alex Marshall and other understandings we have or other intelligence we have, to have any suspicions about our players. We have full confidence in them.”
When asked if any Australian players had been named in The Sun’s operation, Sutherland said: “I think it’s a matter for Alex to talk further about. But what I’ve heard from Alex specifically today is that he does not believe there’s any substance to these allegations.”
Meanwhile, an England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) spokesman said that the board would help out in any way possible.
“ECB work closely with the ICC and their Anti-Corruption unit to protect the integrity of the international game,” he said. “We are aware of these allegations and there is no suggestion that any of the England team is involved in any way.”