Butt's defence seeks to discredit Majeed..2011 newz

 

As we know that the lawyer of former Pakistan captain Salman Butt made his first robust defence of his client by listing a series of amazing claims from Butt's former agent Mazhar Majeed, which included helping Pakistan to ball tamper by supplying them Vaseline on the field.

Ali Bajwa QC attacked the credibility of Majeed as Butt sat in the dock next to former team-mate Mohammed Asif. Bajwa addressed Southwark Crown Court, on the fifth afternoon of the trial relating to one of cricket's biggest controversies, while the prosecution's key witness - journalist Mazhar Mahmood - was in the witness box. Mahmood's multiple secret recordings of conversations with Majeed during a covert operation form much of the prosecution.

Bajwa, reading from various transcripts in front of the jury, picked up on a series of boasts by Majeed. They included: (Majeed speaking to Mahmood) "You know that Zadari killed his wife", referring to the current Pakistan President and his late wife, Benazir Bhutto. She was assassinated in 2007 when left with fatal wounds from an explosion while she stood in a car during a political rally.

The court also heard how Majeed claimed to arrange a £12 million publishing deal for the autobiography of England and Manchester United player Rio Ferdinand, as well as a US$6 million deal for the recent autobiography of now retired Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, whose book rights were sold to Penguin.

Majeed had apparently also told Mahmood that "all Pakistan and India cricketers lie about their age by at least three years" and that he knows "everyone" within the PCB and head of marketing Tariq Hakim "stays at my home - I know all the guys very well".

A claim that also raised eyebrows in the court was the one relating to how he helped the Pakistan team to tamper with the ball. Yasin Patel, on Bajwa's legal team, stood with his left arm in a sling and corroborated with Mahmood the claim made by Majeed.

Patel told of how Majeed claimed to enter the field of play "sometimes" and when the team could not take wicket he used to hand someone a heap of Vaseline so that the ball would swing. There was no suggestion as to whether Majeed was talking about an international match or not.

A prosecution witness appearing in the afternoon, Alan Peacock, who has been a senior investigator for the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit with the ICC for 11 years, said player agents are not allowed to enter the field of play or be allowed access to their dressing, viewing or dining areas during games.

Bajwa also questioned some of Mahmood's methods during his covert operation for the now defunct News of the World and also established that the £140,000 that he paid to Majeed for the no-balls and future fixes was the highest amount of cash he had ever paid in his 20-year career as an investigative journalist.

Bajwa also asked Mahmood why he didn't keep a record of the text messages he sent to Majeed and only kept the replies. Mahmood did not know why. He also appeared perplexed at Mahmood's failure to not know the last time he had spoken to Majeed.

This, after the journalist revealed to the court that he agreed to carry out a request from the police to call Majeed just prior to their raid, to help them ascertain his location. Mahmood will appear for a third consecutive day on Wednesday.

Butt and Asif face charges of conspiracy to cheat, and conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, following the Lord's Test in August last year when they allegedly conspired with Majeed, teenage fast bowler Mohammad Amir and other people unknown to bowl pre-determined no-balls. Butt and Asif deny the charges.

Top banker tipped to replace Ijaz Butt..2011

Zaka Ashraf, a top banker and businessman, is understood to have been picked as chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board succeeding Ijaz Butt, though a formal announcement to that effect is awaited. Ashraf is president of the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited and a close confidant of Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari, who as Patron of the board will make the formal appointment.

The news has not been officially confirmed by the PCB and in fact senior officials insisted that no decision had been taken; Butt, who is on an extension of tenure, himself told reporters he was not aware of any notification and would be at his office on Wednesday morning. However, Ashraf's name was all over the Pakistani media, including, significantly, the government-run PTV channel.

Ashraf himself appeared on private TV channels and spoke at length about his plans for the PCB. His priority, he said, was to improve Pakistan cricket's image abroad after a series of high-profile scandals. "I will work day and night to live up to President Zardari's confidence. My top priority will be to improve Pakistan's cricket image and stop bookies and match-fixers."

He also said he would try to improve relations with other cricket boards - including India, with whom sporting and diplomatic ties have stalled after a terrorist attack on Mumbai in 2008. "People in both Pakistan and India love cricket so I will try to resume ties," he was quoted as saying.

Ashraf's three-year term as president of ZTBL ended on September 3, 2011, and he is expected not to carry on in the position once he takes over his duties as PCB chairman. ZTBL is one of Pakistan's top public-sector banks and is also represented by a team in Division One of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, the domestic first-class competition. The team features several players who have played for Pakistan, including Saeed Ajmal, Yasir Hameed, Imran Nazir and Zulqarnain Haider.

Apart from being president of ZTBL, Ashraf is co-chairman of the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association, Punjab zone. He reportedly studied with Pakistan's president Asif Ali Zardari in college and stayed in the same hostel.

Butt, whose three-year tenure ended on October 8, had attended the ICC executive board meeting in Dubai on October 10 with an extension of his tenure under consideration. His term was plagued with controversies, including the armed attack on the Sri Lanka team in Lahore that resulted in Pakistan being denied the chance to co-host the 2011 World Cup, the spot-fixing scandal (and the problems with the ECB in its aftermath when Butt made controversial accusations against the England team), Zulqarnain Haider's fleeing to the UK mid-way through a tour after receiving threats from bookies and, most recently, a much-publicised clash with Shahid Afridi.

Though they couldn't bat, couldn't field and conceded byes generously, MI finished with the biggest prize at franchise-level Twenty20

More matches were to be fixed 2011

Pakistan were to throw at least one limited-over international on the 2010 tour of England, a court was told on Monday, and only the timing of the News of the World's expose seemed to prevent such a result from occurring.

Brett Lee, the Australia fast bowler, has been ruled out of the South Africa tour due to appendicitis. He will undergo surgery in Cape Town on Monday night and is expected to be out of cricket for six to eight weeks. Australia are yet to name a replacement for Lee in the one-day and Twenty20 squads.



Brett complained of some abdominal pain after arriving in Cape Town on Sunday," Alex Kountoris, Australia team physiotherapist said. "After consulting specialists and having the relevant investigations he has been diagnosed with appendicitis. He will obviously be ruled out of the Twenty20 and ODI series in South Africa."

A replacement player for Lee will be named "in due course" but it is likely that Australia will want to add some experience to their bowling attack. With Patrick Cummins and James Pattinson included in the squad, Lee and Doug Bollinger were the two old hands in the T20 line-up with Mitchell Johnson joining up with the squad for the ODIs.