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Lahore: Pakistani cricketer Mohammad Asif's ex-girlfriend, actress-model Veena Malik, has handed over "proof" of his alleged links with Indian bookies to an official of the ICC's Anti-Corruption Unit. Hasan Raza, who is a top official of the ICC's Anti-Corruption Unit for South Asia, met Malik at her residence here last evening after she alleged that Asif was involved in match-fixing and she had "ample" proof of this. "I handed over Asif's voice recordings with the bookie and some other related information to the ICC official," Malik told a TV news channel. "From head to toe, Pakistani players and officials are involved in match-fixing. I had gone with Asif to Bangkok before Pakistan's tour of Australia. Asif told me he was offered USD 40,000 by an Indian bookie to under-perform in Australia but he demanded USD 200,000. "The Pakistan Cricket Board had evidence of this but no action was taken against him," she said. Asif, ...

Karachi: A senior official of International Cricket Council's anti-corruption and security unit has reached Pakistan in connection with the ongoing investigations into allegations of 'spot-fixing' against three members of Pakistan team in England, reports said. Television channels reported that Reza Hasan, who is on the ICC ACSU, was in Pakistan to meet Federal Investigation Agency officials and also gather information from Veena Malik, the former girlfriend of Mohammad Asif, one of the tainted players. " Reza Hasan will also interview film actress and model, Veena Malik a former girlfriend of pace bowler Mohammad Asif," one channel said. Veena Malik in a television interview had claimed that she had evidence of links between Asif and an Indian bookmaker and that the Sydney Test between Pakistan and Australia was fixed. She has alleged that Asif had personally told her about this and she had also met the Indian bookmaker. Sources said that Reza Hasan was also in t...

Melbourne: The murky saga of bookies making approaches to cricketers widened with revelations that two more Australians, fast bowlers Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson, had confronted an alleged Indian bookmaker during the Ashes in England last year. All-rounder Shane Watson and wicketkeeper batsman Brad Haddin had revealed yesterday that they were approached by a bookmaker in England during the Ashes and Australian team manager Steve Bernard today said the same happened to Lee and Johnson during that time. Lee, Johnson and Watson had passed on the mobile phone number of the alleged bookmaker who approached the trio during the Ashes in London last year, a report in the "Daily Telegraph' said. The alleged bookie also tried to get the phone numbers of the Australian players but they refused to pass on any personal details, it said about an incident that happened in July last year before the second Ashes Test at Lord's. "At the man's insistence, one of the players' ...

Karachi: The Pakistan Cricket Board on Tuesday ruled out suspending any of its players accused of spot-fixing until the police completes investigation and produces incriminating evidence. PCB chairman Ijaz Butt said the investigation was on and there were just unproved allegations so they will not rush to any action. Skipper Salman Butt, pace duo of Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif and stumper Kamran Akmal are under the scanner after an alleged match-fixer Mazhar Majeed claimed that many Pakistani players were involved in spot fixing. The Scotland Yard has questioned both Majeed and the four cricketers in the matter. "There is a case going on with the Scotland Yard. This is only an allegation. There is still no charge or proof on that account. So at this stage there will be no action taken," Butt told 'Cricinfo'. The Chairman refused to reveal if the scandal figured in his chat with Shahid Afridi, who will return as skipper for the one-day series. "This is an inte...

London/Melbourne: The match-fixing scandal that has rocked Pakistan cricket grew in proportion on Monday with reports emerging of more games being rigged prompting a shocked cricketing fraternity to demand life bans on guilty players. The sting operation carried out by British tabloid 'The News of the World', which implicated seven Pakistani players including captain Salman Butt, has opened a Pandora's box with fresh reports suggesting that the opening Test between England and Pakistan and the January Sydney Test between Pakistan and Australia could have been fixed. A guarded International Cricket Council President Sharad Pawar said the allegations were very serious but the ICC would wait for a report from the police in London ore deciding on its course of action. "Until and unless the process of investigation is over, it is improper for me to react," Pawar told reporters in Mumbai. "We have discussed it within the ICC and have decided that let us wait for th...

NEW YORK: Sania Mirza is one win away from making the women's singles main draw of the US Open after scoring a straight-set win over Russian Elina Bovina in the second round of the qualifying event. The Indian, ranked 160th, beat her opponent 10 places below her in WTA chart, 6-3, 6-3 in one hour and 19 minutes to advance to the third and final round. Sania broke her rival twice in four chances and saved two break points on her own serve to go one set up. In the second set, the Indian dropped her serve once but negated it by breaking Elena, who reached US Open quarterfinals in 2002, twice to clinch the issue. She will next face Columbia's Catalina Castano, ranked 188th in the world. Her low ranking forced Sania to go through the qualifiers of a Grand Slam for the first time after her breakthrough year at Australian Open in 2005.

Dambulla (Sri Lanka) : Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara on Friday said India have lifted themselves despite suffering some of their worst ODI defeats in the league stage and it would take a very special effort from his team to avoid a fifth consecutive final loss to them. "They (India) have lifted themselves for the finals and they have outplayed us on many occasions. There have been questions asked about the toss. Whether that was an advantage. I don't think," Sangakkara said in a pre-match press conference. "You must give credit when a side wins consistently. That means they are used to that. We have been to a lot of finals as well. We have just got to make sure that we lift ourselves tomorrow for a special effort," he added. India lost by a massive 200 runs to New Zealand and were handed an eight wicket thrashing by Sri Lanka after being dismissed for a mere 103. But history still favours the Indians, who most recently defeated Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup ...