Match Fixing Row Gets Physical

The row over Pakistani match fixing took a new turn after an altercation broke out between cricketers this week when English batsman Jonathan Trott and Pakistani Wahab Riaz had a set too. The two had to be pulled apart by English coach Graham Gooch in a warm up session, after tempers boiled over. 

Trott was allegedly heard asking Riaz how much he stood to make from the bookies after the next one day international. Pakistani captain, Shahid Afridi said that Trott had then thrown a pad at Riaz, hitting him in the face. 

Afridi said, “It could have been a police case because it is a crime to hit someone. But we showed a big heart and did not press for it.” Riaz however, is one of five Pakistani team members under investigation in the match fixing scandal. 

David Collier for the ECB felt that the matter was closed after match official Jeff Crowe stepped in to deal with the situation. “I think feelings have been running high in the last 24 hours, so that is bound to spill over.” 

The chairman of the Pakistani Cricket board has gone on to enrage the English team over the last couple of days, suggesting they manipulated the result for the third ODI, causing deep anger within the England camp. Andrew Strauss has totally refuted the allegations and said that the team will be looking closely at exploring all legal options in the case.