PCB Suspends Contracts of Tainted Trio

Karachi: Pakistan's disgraced trio of Salman Butt, Mohammed Aamir and Mohammed Asif have had their central contracts suspended by the Pakistan Cricket Board.

A senior official of the PCB said on Wednesday that the central contracts of the three players stood suspended from November 1.

He explained that until the International Cricket Council (ICC) takes a final call on their provisional suspensions and also on the spot fixing allegations against them, they can't get any benefits from the board.

"Only those players are given contracts who can play for Pakistan. Since these three can't represent Pakistan until the final decision on their suspensions their contracts are suspended," Director of International Cricket Operations, Zakir Khan said.

Tafazzul Rizvi the legal advisor of the board said that the contracts were suspended in line with the ICC anti-corruption code of conduct laws.

The three players were provisionally suspended by the ICC on September 2 when they were touring England. The suspensions came after a British tabloid did a sting operation and report that the three had allegedly taken bribes to indulge in spot fixing during the fourth Test against England at Lord's.

Butt and Aamir appealed against the provisional suspensions but the head of the ICC code of conduct commission upheld their suspensions after a two-day hearing in Dubai last weekend.

Rizvi said until the appeal hearing was held their contracts remained but now they were suspended. He pointed out that the Board Chairman had last month only also given instructions to stop all payments to the suspended trio including monthly retainers of their contracts.

"The board at present is not providing any sort of help or support to the players and they now have to contest the suspensions and allegations against them by themselves," Rizvi said.

Salman and Aamir on returning from Dubai said they were disappointed by the rejection of their appeals. They feel that the ICC was trying to corner Pakistan cricket.

"We are being punished for being Pakistanis," Salman said.