Latif’s allegations kick up dust in Colombo

The relevant paragraph states: "Azarbhai, Jaddu (Jadeja), Raju and Sidhu and some other Indian players… mere ghar phone kya karte the (used to telephone me at home) to find out how the pitch was, whether it would aid batting or bowling, how strong the teams were and what the weather was like. They had to pass on the information to other people. I used to oblige generally as it was nothing wrong on my side," Latif is quoted as saying. However, Azharuddin received a fax from London in which Latif has emphatically de nied the statements attributed to him against the Indian players.

Azharuddin released Rashid Latif, wish to make clear the following newspaper statements against many Indian cricketers are very falscified (sic) to the original interwiew (sic), in which I only stated my friendship with Azharuddin, Ajay Jadeja and Raju. Any extension to this statement should be disregarded as they seem to be allegations by the press and not myself.

Rashid Latif copies of the fax he received from Latif at a crowded press conference addressed by the Indian manager, Professor Ratnakar Shetty and Azhar himself.

BCCI stands by players: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary JV Lele, got in touch with Shetty to assure the players that the Board is firmly behind them. “The BCCI has categorically made it clear that the players need not be bothered about the allegations appearing in the Outlook and that they (BCCI) stand by the players.”

The fax sent by Lele to the Indian team manager states: “…articles appearing in various papers and magazines are far from true and are exaggerated and should be ignored. Raj Singh has stressed that this is (sic) has nothing to do with BCCI nor is anyway serious. Kindly inform all the players to neglect and ignore such malicious reports.”

The manager said that he was “deeply disturbed” by the story as it came at a time when the team was all keyed up before a very crucial match which was going to “decide our fate in the Asia Cup”.

He said the BCCI is keen on “cleaning up” such allegations, which is why they have instituted former chief justice YV Chandrachud as a one-man committee to go into the match-fixing and bribery allegations.

“If Outlook has anything to reveal, they should have gone before Justice Chandrachud instead of sensationalising it in this manner,” he opined.Azhar’s plea: Releasing Latif’s statement, Azhar hoped that the fax would clear the air.

Asked if he was planning to sue the magazine, Azhar replied: “The only thing on my mind now is cricket. I have another month to go (for the tour to end). I just want to concentrate on the game.” He then gave a protracted discourse to the mediamen asking them to be responsible in their writing. “We (India) are celebrating 50 years of our Independence and I hope you guys write what is true and positive.”

Azhar, who had a long cold war with Indian media, added: “Come and ask me. I will give you 100 per cent facts. Making unsubstantiated charges not only hurts the players but the entire country… The players are under a tremendous amount of pressure.”

Manager Shetty said that both Jadeja and Sidhu too have categorically denied what has appeared in Outlook, and said that if they have anything to say at a later date, they would do so to Justice Chandrachud.

The Indians have closed ranks. Despite the camaraderie that prevailed among them as they practiced at the indoor nets of the Nondescript Cricket Club, they were obviously tensed about what has erupted just before an extremely crucial and difficult match in which they are facing heavy odds. The Pakistani players were not available for their reaction to Latif’s allegations as they have gone to Nuwara-Eliya, a scenic resort about 125 miles from Colombo.