Salman Butt and Mohammad Amir returned to Pakistan on Sunday and pledged to clear their names of corruption charges that earned them bans of at least five years each from an International Cricket Council (ICC) tribunal.
Afghanistan were granted Test status in June by the International Cricket Council, putting them in an elite group of 12 sides permitted to compete in the longest form of the game.
Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Ejaz Butt has accused the ICC and the BCCI of treating them as beggars and threatened dire consequences if they are not allowed to host 2011 World Cup matches.
The International Cricket Council has asked all its member nations to prepare sporting pitches for one-dayers and Twenty20 internationals probably in the wake of low-scoring matches played in the Champions Trophy and Champions League T20 tournaments recently.
A professional banker, Salman Butt, was on Tuesday named managing director of the 2011 World Cup central organising secretariat amid rising concerns over the slow pace of preparations for the mega-event in South Asia. The Pakistan Cricket Board confirmed Butt's selection had been approved by the International Cricket Council.
The ICC said the responsibility of appointing umpires was given to it by the executive board and no country should make such demands on it.
The Pakistan Cricket Board will reprimand its chief selector for an outburst against English umpire David Shepherd.
The PCB warned Inzamam saying he would not be considered for national selection if he decides to play for the breakaway Indian Cricket League.
ICC has agreed to review the MPA after the Asian bloc refused to sign it before the set deadline.
Former International Cricket Council president Ehsan Mani lashed out at the Pakistan Cricket Board for taking a "stubborn" stance when the 'spot-fixing' allegations first came out, saying it should have promptly suspended the tainted players.
Confidential correspondence between the ICC's Anti-Corruption Unit and the PCB has been a subject of some "serious suspicion" over match-fixing allegations.
Tainted former Pakistan captain Saleem Malik on Wednesday pleaded with the Pakistan Cricket Board to drop his life ban for match-fixing and help fulfil his goal to take up coaching assignments. The 57-year-old Malik was found guilty of match-fixing following a judicial inquiry in 2000 in a scandal that rocked the cricket world.
Australian Geoff Lawson has sparked speculation over his future as Pakistan coach by leaving the country suddenly a month before it hosts the ICC Champions Trophy.
The ICC's Anti-Corruption Unit officer Alan Peacock has reportedly questioned the two Pakistani players following claims by Shoaib Akhtar that he rejected offers to underperform in matches.
Banned Pakistan paceman Shabbir Ahmed had his bowling action cleared by biomechanics experts in Australia.
ICC president Percy Sonn said the judgment emphasises that cricket has a zero tolerance of drug use.
The prominent voices that have called for a suspension of cricket ties are senior off-spinner Harbhajan Singh and pacer Mohammed Shami.
The International Cricket Council on Monday announced that it has withdrawn Pakistan umpire Aleem Dar from the remaining matches in the ongoing India versus South Africa series following threats from Shiv Sena.
India are scheduled to play a bilateral series against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates in December.
Official documents relating to the dispute between the Pakistan Cricket Board and the ICC over the shifting of 2011 World Cup from the country have revealed the background drama that took place during which PCB lost the support of co-hosts of the quadrennial event. According to excerpts of official correspondence between the PCB and ICC, at one point of time PCB chairman Ijaz Butt had even directly accused India of influencing Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to not support Pakistan.
The new law will ensure that ICC has more powers to intervene if they feel a member is not doing all it can in the fight against drugs in cricket.
However, the Australian umpire will pursue a simultaneous law suit against the ICC for racial discrimination.
'Ghost-like stands repel rather than attract audiences,' observes Ashis Ray.
All drug tests for prohibited substances during the ICC Champions Trophy produced negative results.
The Indian security officer stood his ground that Shoaib Akhtar had slapped coach Bob Woolmer in the team bus.
ICC Chief Executive Malcolm Speed said any correspondence between the ACU and member countries on corruption issues is confidential.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has directed all member countries to introduce an anti-corruption code in their domestic leagues by April in the wake of spot-fixing allegations against the Pakistan cricketers.
Richard Thompson, have suggested that staging the Champions Trophy without powerhouse India is not an option and there are "contingencies available" if Rohit Sharma's team doesn't travel to host country Pakistan.
But the Pakistan captain could still face action for raising the issue of 'fancy fixing' with the ICC.
'Certainly, Pakistan should be playing in the World Cup, even in India.'
India is scheduled to play against Pakistan in their 2019 World Cup match in Manchester on June 16.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) will not be sending match officials to Pakistan for the tour of Zimbabwe should the limited overs series go ahead, the governing body said on Sunday.
PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan said a fund-raising match has been planned to help survivors of the Indian Ocean tsunami.
The Australian cricket board said it is comfortable with the level of security provided to their Champions Trophy team following Saturday night's attack in London that killed seven people.
The former ICC chief dismissed the PCB's notion that the ICC does not have enough Asian representation and is dominated by the whites.
It is a tribute to a system so robustly meritocratic that this team represents India's diversity better than any other institution: The Union Cabinet, our chief ministers, the civil services, the leadership of our armed forces and security agencies, the judiciary and more than all of these, our typical newsroom. That is the biggest message from this breathless rise of Indian cricket, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
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