KARACHI: Pakistan will not appeal against the five-year bans imposed on Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer for corruption, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ijaz Butt said on Saturday. "The PCB does not have the jurisdiction to challenge the bans on these three players because this is a matter directly between the players and the International Cricket Council (ICC) anti-corruption tribunal," Butt said. An ICC tribunal found the trio guilty of spot-fixing on Saturday by arranging for the delivery of deliberate no-balls in the fourth test against England last August. Former ICC president Ehsan Mani criticised the PCB for its handling of the issue. "I think the PCB failed to handle this issue properly and didn't bother to guide the players at all. While the bans were neccessary to discourage corruption in cricket I think Ijaz Butt also morally should resign immediately," Mani said. Former Test captain, Moin Khan said it was a shameful da

Banned: Salman Butt has been banned for 10 years for spot-fixing, but five years of his sentence have been suspended Photo: REUTERS By Scyld Berry 9:25PM GMT 05 Feb 2011 Scyld's Twitter Comments Even if their sentences are not reduced on appeal by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, Mohammad Amir will only be 23, Mohammad Asif 32, and Salman Butt 31 when those sentences expire in September 2015 provided they keep their noses clean in the meantime. So there is hope for them: hope that they can return to the international cricket field, although as a pace bowler and the oldest of the three, Asif has much less of a chance than the other two. It may well be that in this sentencing the influence of Justice Albie Sachs is at work. Having been maimed by a bomb planted by the operatives of Apartheid South Africa, he has been subsequently renowned for his quality of mercy. But the unofficial impression given by the International Cricket Council after the Doha verdict was

At first glance, Zaheer Khan doesn't come across as a study in contradiction. He does not lack the belligerence of a faster bowler, has riled opposition teams often enough and has a tendency to get under the skin of any batsman found wanting qualities acceptable and expected in any premier pacer. Like many others of his breed, he has lived with injuries, suffered for them, nursed them and overcome them. Yet probe deeper and none of these qualities explain his sudden metamorphosis into one of the world's premier wicket-takers around 2006-07, almost six years into a stop-start international career dotted with disappointments and murmurs about attitude. The reaffirmation of Zaheer the phenomenon at Trent Bridge a performance from which he has never looked back in spite of more injuries and his easing into the role of responsible bowling spearhead, master planner and expert craftsman all rolled into one has been one of Indian cricket's greatest success stories. Ironically

PAKISTAN'S shamed skipper Salman Butt has been clobbered with a 10-YEAR ban from cricket. Butt and team-mates Mohammed Amir and Mohammed Asif were today found guilty of spot-fixing charges at an ICC anti-corruption hearing in Qatar. Asif and Amir were handed bans of seven years and five years for their parts in the cricket scandal. The trio were caught arranging to bowl no-balls for fixer Mazher Majeed in last summer's Test series in England. Majeed was arrested for conspiring to defraud bookies after he demanded 150,000 from undercover journalists for access to his betting scam. Butt's 10-year ban includes five years suspended meaning he will be out of the game until at least 2016. Asif was handed a seven-year ban, two of which are suspended, while Amir recevied a straight five-year ban. The three stars are also facing criminal charges in the UK after the Crown Prosecution Service announced yesterday that they will investigate. Advertisement

Down and out: Eoin Morgan a possible doubt for the World Cup Photo: GETTY IMAGES By Telegraph staff and agencies 2:25PM GMT 05 Feb 2011 Comments The Ireland-born player has suffered a fracture of the distal phalanx in the middle finger of his left hand, and will return to the UK to see a specialist. He could now be a doubt for the World Cup, depending on the medical assessment given. Morgan first noticed the problem during the fourth ODI against Australia in Adelaide put the problem got progressively worse and the England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed that an X-ray had shown a fracture. Morgan's injury is the latest in a series of problems that have affected England's limited-overs squad. Worst hit has been the bowling division with Graeme Swann (knee/back), Tim Bresnan (calf), Ajmal Shahzad (hamstring), Chris Tremlett (side strain) and all-rounder Paul Collingwood (back) all having flown home early. Paceman Stuart Broad has also been sidelined for the e

NEW DELHI: Sachin Tendulkar says Anil Kumble is the greatest bowler he has played with, finds Rahul Dravid's technique and concentration excellent and VVS Laxman the most wristy, while Sourav Ganguly is one who figured out his game well. Tendulkar, who has closely seen all the four who formed the Fab Five of the Indian team not long ago, elaborated on the the style and substance of the four players. "From the manner in which Rahul and Sourav had batted in their debut Test match, it was quite evident that they were there to stay." Tendulkar said in a book titled 'SACH,' by Gautam Bhattacharya. "Rahul's forte was excellent technique and he loved to occupy the crease for long hours. Rahul concentrated extremely well -- I mean, still concentrates very well. Sourav was somebody who figured out his game well enough. He knew which bowler to hit and which one to defend. Sourav liked scoring runs in boundaries. He was a boundary hitter. "Laxman depe

New Delhi: India middle-order batman Yuvraj Singh on Friday revealed that he almost thought of quitting international cricket when he was dropped from both the Test and ODI teams last year. Yuvraj said it was the toughest phase in his 10-year-long career and his parents helped him overcome that lean period. "It was tough time for me. I think that was the toughest period for me in last 10 years. There was time when I asked myself do I want to continue. Seriously I thought do I want to play anymore or not. There was lot of negativity around me," he said. "Everytime I hit the field, I was getting injured. That time was really bad for me. I just came out of it with the help of few good friends, my strong father and mother. Some amount of self motivation and hard training," said Yuvraj. The 29-year-o