Pakistan suspend Butt, Amir and Asif’s contracts

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has suspended the central contracts of batsman Salman Butt and pace bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif.The trio are under investigation for alleged spot-fixing during Pakistan’s tour of England earlier this year.They remain provisionally suspended from all cricketing activities by the International Cricket Council.Butt and Amir lost their appeals to the ICC over the provisional bans, while Asif had withdrawn his appeal.PCB official Zakir Khan said the contracts were suspended in line with the ICC’s anti-corruption code.”Their contracts were active until the appeal hearing but once their initial appeals were rejected under the ICC code we can’t keep them on contracts,” stated Khan.
Meanwhile, PCB legal advisor Tafazzul Rizvi explained that the PCB had suspended the contracts stopped paying the trio because they were no longer eligible to play for the national side.”We only give contracts to players who can play for Pakistan. Until their cases are decided… they can’t get any benefits from the board in terms of contracts,” he added.Butt, who was Test captain during the summer tour of England and seamers Amir and Asif were questioned by British police following allegations published in the News of the World newspaper at the end of August about the final Test against England at Lord’s.It was claimed that Asif and Amir deliberately bowled no-balls at pre-arranged times during the Test, with Butt also said to be involved, in return for money from a bookmaker’s “middle man”.Fellow seamer Wahab Riaz was also questioned by police, whose investigation – separate from the ICC Anti-Corruption and Security Unit’s (ACSU) own investigation – remains ongoing, although no criminal charges have yet been brought – Bbc