Mohammed Irfan confesses approach made by a bookie during PSL

The 7ft Pakistan speedster Mohammed Irfan has admitted guilty for violating the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)’s anti-corruption code. A board official confirmed this report to The Express Tribune on Monday.

The seven-foot bowler told the board’s Anti-Corruption Unit(ACU) that he was in contact with a set of bookies before his mother’s death, not during the Pakistan Super League. He, however, failed to report it to the ACU, as he should have.

The fast bowler was guilty of keeping the approaches made by the bookies with himself. Irfan admitted that it never occurred to him that he should inform the ACU post the mental trauma he faced during his mother’s death.

Controversies mauled around in the PSL starting from the first week when PCB suspended Islamabad United’s duo Sharjeel Khan and Khalif Latif on the ground of corruption. Irfan’s name was mentioned alongside Karachi Kings’ Shahzeb Hasan and Quetta Gladiators’ Zulfiqar Babar in the investigation, but later the charges against them were dropped.

Hasan’s statement too has been recorded, and it remains to be seen if he was involved in the corruption charges and keeping the bookies’ advance to himself.

The final, however, turned out to be a fair one as the two sides Peshawar Zalmi and Quetta Gladiators faced each other at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. The tournament, however, was miffed by many issues in regular intervals, with the finals having the threat of security and massive arrangements were made to protect the players involved in the finals.

Over 10,000 soldiers were called up to take on the responsibility that concerned the final. Many a foreign player opted not to travel to Lahore for fear of their safety. However, the success of the league ensured that big stars such as Darren Sammy would return to the country for the next season.

Darren Sammy concluded the PSL by saying that playing at Lahore felt like playing back at home in St Lucia.