(REUTERS) – Former Pakistan leg-spinner Danish Kaneria has been banned for life by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) after being found guilty of corruption, the ECB said yesterday. “We regard Danish Kaneria as a grave danger to the game of cricket and we must take every appropriate step to protect our game from his corrupt activities,” the ECB said in a statement announcing the ban.
The sanction means Kaneria, 31, is suspended from any involvement in the playing, organisation or administration of any cricket under the jurisdiction of the ECB, after he was found guilty of encouraging or attempting to encourage Essex team mate Mervyn Westfield to underperform during a match in 2009, the ECB said.
The bowler was named in a London court in February as a go-between in a spot-fixing scandal that resulted in Westfield being jailed for four months.
Kaneria denied the charges, while Westfield, who has been released from prison, pleaded guilty to the ECB charge of accepting money to underperform and was banned for five years although he will be able to participate in club cricket for the final two years of the suspension.
A distraught Kaneria, who has maintained his innocence since he was first questioned by Essex Police two years ago, later hit out at the detailed findings of the panel.
“I’m very upset about this decision. For what reason they have convicted me I do not know,” he told Sky Sports News.
“It is a very, very unfair decision against me. I’ve come all the way from Pakistan to say the truth. They (ECB) don’t have any proof against me. I don’t know why they are saying this (“grave danger to cricket”, etc).
“I will definitely be doing an appeal. The people trust me. I’m an honest man. I’ve been playing cricket with passion and love. I have done nothing wrong.”