Jadeja denies match fixing charges, Tendulkar breaks his silence

The end result was along expected lines. Ajay Jadeja was grilled for about two hours by the CBI but predictably enough, at the end of it all, the former Indian captain denied having any links with bookies or any knowledge of match fixing while deposing before the investigative agency. Jadeja was questioned following allegations about his involvement in betting by former Crime Branch chief of Mumbai police Rakesh Maria. Former Indian all rounder Manoj Prabhakar had submitted video tapes clandestinely shot by him to the agency in which Maria has been shown as naming Jadeja as one of the persons involved in the betting scandal. However, during the questioning, Jadeja denied the charges, according to CBI sources.

The CBI is now planning to question another former captain Ravi Shastri. Having finished his duties as a TV commentator in Sri Lanka, Shastri is now available to depose before the CBI. His evidence is keenly awaited by the agency as he is the only person who has reportedly confirmed that Prabhakar had informed him of the alleged offer of Rs 25 lakhs by current Indian team coach Kapil Dev to under perform during a one dayer in Sri Lanka in 1994.

Among those likely to depose before the CBI in the next couple of weeks, besides Shastri, are former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar, former cricket manager Anshuman Gaekwad and former Indian cricketer Ajay Sharma. The CBI is also of the view that Gavaskar's evidence could also be of some help as Prabhakar has claimed that he had informed Gavaskar too about the alleged offer which Kapil Dev has denied. In the meantime, CBI sources maintain that the deadlock continues. And the way things are moving, there seems little likelihood of any progress being made in the case.

Meanwhile, breaking his long silence on the subject, former Indian captain Sachin Tendulkar has said the match fixing scandal had been a shock to him but he was confident that this was just a passing phase in the game.

Expressing his views which have been awaited for long in an interview with a news weekly, Tendulkar dismissed attempts to drag his name into the controversy. "I have always been out of this kind of thing. The nation knows I am clean. My whole career has been transparent. I don't have to go out and say anything in my defence", he said.

"The only reason I did not speak about it is that I didn't know anything about it. I would have given a statement if I knew something. So how can I say who is telling the truth and who is not?", Tendulkar asked.

Tendulkar denied former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif's claim that he knew everything about match-fixing. "It's not true. And it's not necessary that I have to react to any person's statements".

On the allegation that four of Mumbai's top bookies were present at his wedding, Tendulkar said: "As far as I am concerned, there was not a single person of that description at the wedding. I don't know why people are dragging my name into this."

Tendulkar said: "The players should have some freedom to speak about the game, not about things like match-fixing because that's a sensitive issue. Anybody who opens his mouth should also provide proof. It's important not to create controversies. It's the game that will suffer," he said.

On whether Indian cricket could recover from the scandal, Tendulkar said cricket was too great a game to be permanently affected by these scandals. "It has given so much joy to people all over the world. This is just a passing phase. I am a positive person. I can only look at the positive side," he added. On the general impression that he was too diplomatic, Tendulkar said "I don't think as an Indian cricketer I am a diplomatic person. Rather, I would say that I have always been soft-spoken. To me it's natural not to say much beyond the game."

In the meantime, the Board of Control of Cricket for India's new code of conduct, which will come into force from the India-Pakistan Sahara Cup series to be played at Toronto from September 9 has some stringest clauses. The code of conduct, put together in the wake of the match fixing scandal, has it that any Indian cricketer, team official or umpire found guilty of match fixing would face a ban for life and those betting on any match will be barred for five years or ten years. All players and team officials will also be required to sign an agreement with the BCCI pledging to abide by the code of conduct in respect of betting, match fixing and general conduct.

On a separate front, with the match fixing scandal having had its repercussions worldwide, all the cricketing countries have felt it necessary to introduce measures to combat the menace. Just last week there was a report that Hansie Cronje had invited to act as guest lecturer in sports ethics at a Pretoria University. Now a report from Australia has it that the Australian Cricket Board is to host an anti corruption conference in Melbourne on Tuesday. The meeting, involving leading officials, will hear from lawyers and gambling experts and include a round table discussion on the regulation of sports gambling and how to educate players. Former Australian off spinner Tim May, who is president of the Australian Cricketers' Association, will speak about the pressures of playing professional sport and the consequences of being a whistle blower. ``If we can find common ground to fight the problem, then that will benefit all sports, not just cricket,'' said ACB chief executive Malcolm Speed.