Pak House to grill Younis over ‘fixing’

Islamabad
Oct. 6: Pakistan cricket captain Younis Khan, coach Intikhab Alam and Pakistan Cricket Board chief Ijaz Butt have been summoned to appear before their country’s parliamentary standing committee on sports for questioning regarding allegations that they deliberately threw the games against Australia and New Zealand in the just-concluded Champions Trophy in South Africa.
Pakistan captain Younis Khan has, however, denied the allegations. “We performed up to the mark, winning or losing is part of the game. When I said I tried to save my fractured finger (while taking a catch against New Zealand) I did not mean I deliberately threw the catch away,” Younis Khan said. The Pakistan skipper said his conscience was clear and that he would appear before the Parliament body with an open heart. “They can ask me whatever they want. I am clear and all the team members are clear.”
“There is a feeling that the (Pakistan) team lost deliberately to Australia (who later won the event) and then New Zealand (in the semi-final). We will investigate it and question the players and management (of the PCB),” said the chairman of the Pakistan National Assembly’s standing committee on sports, Mr Jamshed Ahmed Dasti. “There were clear-cut signs that the team did not want to win both the matches. We will dig out what was the cause of their under-performance,” he claimed.
Australia might not have qualified for the semi-final had Pakistan won against them and India could have advanced had they defeated the West Indies. The ICC will also investigate the charges of match-fixing in the Pakistan-New Zealand semi-final.