London, Sept 12: Police are investigating claims that a betting syndicate attempted to pay England cricketers £1 million ($ 1.63 million) to throw a Test match in their recently-completed series against New Zealand, the BBC reported today.It said police had confirmed they were making inquiries after a player said he had been approached.Sunday's News of the World newspaper reported that leading all-rounder Chris Lewis, who was not selected for the series against New Zealand, was asked by an Asian betting syndicate to persuade members of the England team to play badly during the third Test.Lewis, reportedly offered £300,000 ($ 487,500) to act as a go-between, immediately contacted the cricket authorities, the newspaper said. England's players, who lost the four-match series 2-1, were never aware of the approach. The rain-hit third Test was drawn.The news comes just before the completion of a report in Pakistan into allegations that captain Wasim Akram and two team-mates have been involved in matchfixing.Akram, Salim Malik and Ijaz Ahmed, who are currently suspended, could face life bans if implicated by the report, which is due to be completed within the next week.Illegal betting syndicates in Asia, where vast sums are wagered on sports results, have been linked to several similar corruption scandals in recent years.Donald doubtfulLONDON: South African fast bowler Allan Donald is facing a battle to be fit for the winter Test series against England after finishing his injury-hit season with his English county Warwickshire.Donald will return home today for an urgent consultation with doctors in Pretoria to decide whether he needs an ankle operation. The recovery time would be two to three months and the first Test with England is only 10 weeks away.Cronje peevedJOHANNESBURG: South African captain Hansie Cronje has said he was not going to take his position as skipper lightly though he accepted that the selectors had the right to question any players' form.Cronje,who was recently appointed captain only for the first four of the next nine Test matches South Africa will be playing this summer, has said he was not happy to be put on trial after the team's disappointing exit from the World Cup. ``I can't say I was over the moon when I opened the newspapers and saw I was on trial,'' said Cronje.Sarfaraz harassed?ISLAMABAD: Former Pakistan fast bowler Sarfaraz Nawaz has alleged that cricket officials were ``harassing and threatening'' him and has appealed that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif intervene in the matter.The outspoken Sarfaraz Nawaz, in a letter to Nawaz Sharif, has alleged that the handling of affairs by the present lot of officials in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has led to the ``downfall'' of cricket.
