Six umpires, who were allegedly caught in a TV sting willing to fix decisions in cricket matches, have been suspended till the completion of inquiry.
The International Cricket Council and its relevant Full Members have agreed not to appoint any umpire named in the India TV sting to any matches pending investigations.
"The officials named in sting are not contracted by ICC and those Boards who employ and nominate them will conduct the investigations," the ICC said in its statement.
India TV has allegedly found six umpires - Nadeem Ghauri and Anees Siddiqui of Pakistan, Nadir Shah of Bangladesh, and Gamini Dissanayake, Maurice Winston and Sagara Gallage of Sri Lanka - were willing to give `favourable` decisions or provide inside information on teams and playing conditions in return for illicit payments.
In the sting, Pakistan umpire Nadeem Ghauri agreed to give LBW decisions on demand, Sri Lankan umpire Sagar Gallage agreed to part with pitch information one and a half hours before the game, Bangladesh umpire Nadir Shah agreed to warn bowlers unfairly. Maurice Winston too allegedly shared a pitch report, team reports and playing XIs for the warm-up match Australia-England T20 match in exchange for Rs. 50,000.
However, the umpires have rubbished the allegations and are considering legal action against the channel. Pakistan`s Nadir Shah said any suggestion he was open to bribery was "absolutely rubbish". "If I am going to fix match, I will be caught some day by the ICC... no umpire fixes matches," he told the Press Trust of India.
Nadeem Ghauri also denied any involvement. "I am surprised at these baseless allegations," he told AFP, saying he would consult his lawyers.
National cricket boards of Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh have also promised to investigate the case.
