AAP - October 5, 2009, 2:43 pm
Pakistan captain Younus Khan’s dropped catch at a crucial point in Saturday’s Champions Trophy cricket match against New Zealand has roused suspicions of corrupt play.
While strenuously denying deliberately dropping the ball, Younus conceded that the dropped catch cost his team the Champions Trophy semi-final match in Johannesburg on Saturday.
But the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) anti-corruption unit will be having a good look at the match, according to the Ahmedabad Mirror. However the newspaper noted: “It would be jumping the gun at this stage to suggest a hanky panky semi-final.”
The match was evenly poised when Younus dropped Grant Elliott in the covers off teenage fast bowler Mohammad Aamer in the 40th over, with the New Zealand batsman then on 42 in his team’s total of 4-165.
New Zealand needed 69 to win at that stage with six wickets in hand, but Elliott steered his team home with a crucial 104-run stand for the fifth wicket with skipper Daniel Vettori (41).
“The officials are guarded in their reactions at this stage, but indeed, the tapes of the Pakistan-New Zealand semi-final match are on their way to the anti-corruption unit,” the newspaper reported.
Younus “shockingly” gave priority to the safety of an injured finger to making the catch, it said.
The Pakistan captain showed an after-match press conference the bandaged little finger of his right hand, and said the reason he missed the catch was because he was trying to protect a fractured finger.
“When I ran Gautam Gambhir out with the same hand, people clapped and said `what a patriot, playing for the country with a broken finger’,” he said.
“Now, the same people will call me names, they will suggest I was up to something. I am not worried about anything.”
^^ Having said that, It was not only that catch, Afridi dropped and important catch in the game against Australia, but Mohd Asif, did managed to ball some good length and finally awarded with two quick wickets....
So the point is the lousy bowling display by Omer Gul and Rana Naveed.. thats when we lost the match...
The ICC Anti-Coruption unit should investigate with the umpires about their biased umpiring in the semi-final rather than scrutinizing Younis Khan. He said at the toss of the semi-final I am not fit and all the boys know that and they want me to play. And I agree, Rana Naveed & Umar Gul being the two experienced bowlers should've bowled better and less no-balls. Plus the batting let us down again. All-in-all, we lost cuz of small total, biased umpiring (Helped in the small total) and bad bowling (biased umpiring again helped NZ not lose more wickets).
Guess who is having constipation these days after news from Isloo ,Pindi and SWAT valley? :)
dont tell me you like seeing innocent people dying. dont bring tragedies in game section. and we all know how awful indian media treats even their own players.