The England & Wales Cricket Board has confirmed that Pakistan's tour will continue despite the ICC launching an investigation into the third ODI between England and Pakistan at The Oval. The ICC received information from a newspaper before the game began alleging that bookies were aware of certain scoring patterns that occurred during the match.
An ECB board meeting was held at 12pm on Saturday and Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, has written to the ICC president Sharad Pawar for clarification of the information they hold.
"Following a board meeting held at noon on September 18 the chairman of ECB has written to the president of ICC seeking assurances that ICC does not have evidence which could result in either charges or suspension of players prior to the conclusion of the current NatWest Series," the statement said. "No substantive evidence has been shared with ECB or PCB at this stage.
"The ECB board noted the ICC is not stating as fact that anything untoward has occurred, nor has yet been proven in relation to the third ODI between England and Pakistan. The ECB has received confirmation that no England players nor member of management are involved in any allegation linked with ACSU activities."
The ICC stated that "a full investigation is warranted", confirming that the information it received in advance about certain scoring patterns during the game appeared to be correct. The information was passed on to the ICC by The Sun, which said it was based on details of calls between a person based in Dubai and a bookie in Delhi.
The ICC, however, clarified that it was premature to suggest anything untoward had occurred during Pakistan's 23-run victory on Friday.
"A source informed The Sun newspaper that a certain scoring pattern would emerge during certain stages of the match and, broadly speaking, that information appeared to be correct," Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, said.
"We therefore feel it is incumbent upon us to launch a full enquiry into this particular game, although it is worth pointing out at this stage that we are not stating as fact that anything untoward has occurred. Only in the fullness of the investigation can that be established."
Angus Porter, the chief executive of the Professional Cricketers' Association, said the players would take their lead from the ECB. "We don't have enough facts to make a judgement," he told ESPNcricinfo. "The players will do what the ECB decide."
The Pakistan board was unwilling to comment until further details were available, though PCB chairman Ijaz Butt arrived in Dubai on Saturday from Delhi. It isn't clear whether the chairman was scheduled to fly back to Pakistan via Dubai or whether the latest allegations prompted the trip to the headquarters of the game's governing body. A meeting with the ICC at some point is likely. "I don't have any details as of now. We are just trying to gather all the facts right now, " Butt told ESPNcricinfo.
Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan captain, was also unaware of the report until it was read out to him, but clearly unimpressed, told ESPNcricinfo, "All this is rubbish."
The development came on the same day that Scotland Yard passed on to prosecutors an initial file of evidence on claims that Pakistan cricketers were involved in spot-fixing. It said evidence that there was a conspiracy to defraud bookmakers will be considered by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
Three Pakistan players - Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif - remain suspended by the ICC for their alleged role in the spot-fixing scandal that engulfed the Lord's Test between Pakistan and England. The players, however, have filed appeals against the suspension
