Lara's clean

The International Cricket Council (ICC) anti-corruption unit has not asked to interview Brian Lara over allegations of match-fixing.

West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) chief executive officer Gregory Shillingford said yesterday Sir Paul Condon, the former London police chief who heads the unit, had reported he found no substance to the charges against the star batsman by Indian bookmaker Mukhesh Gupta in India's Central Bureau Investigation (CBI) report last year.

'Sir Paul and his unit went to Delhi to follow up on the CBI report and has informed us they found nothing to the allegations against Lara,' Shillingford said.

'He has made no request to speak to Lara.'

Gupta claimed he gave Lara 'around $40 000' to underperform in two One-Day matches on the West Indies tour of India in 1994.

Lara issued a statement following the publication of the CBI report, 'categorically' denying he had taken money 'from a bookmaker or anyone else to underperform' and stating he had put the matter in the hands of his lawyers.

He has been solidly backed by the WICB from the time the CBI report was made public.

'I don't believe a word of it,' president Pat Rousseau said at the time.

Lara is one of nine non-Indian players named in the report.

Condon has requested interviews with the Australian Mark Waugh and the former New Zealand captain Martin Crowe, who were both charged by Gupta. He has already spoken to England's Alec Stewart.

Waugh was given an ultimatum by the Australian Cricket Board after his lawyer stated on Tuesday he would not meet with Condon.

Waugh was given 24 hours to change his mind or face suspension. He complied and a meeting has been arranged with Condon in Melbourne February 8.