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Cricket
Tillakaratne threatens cricket expose
Former Sri Lanka captain poised to share match-fixing allegations with ICC.
Last Modified: 03 May 2011 18:14
Tillakaratne said he feared for his life when asked why he didn't come forward sooner [AFP]

Former Sri Lanka captain Hashan Tillakaratne said on Tuesday he was ready to share information on alleged match-fixing with the International Cricket Council, the game's world governing body.

Tillakaratne, now an opposition politician, said he will name those involved in match-fixing to ICC officials, after claiming last week that Sri Lanka players had been fixing matches since 1992.

"I made the statements (about match-fixing) neither to get political mileage nor to put anyone in an awkward position," he told reporters a day after a police inquiry was ordered into his allegations.

"I made the comments in good faith and I will share the information with the ICC. The exercise was meant to protect the game and the players we all love so much."

Fears

Tillakaratne, who played 83 Tests and 200 one-dayers during a 15-year career, added that he had kept quiet for so many years as he feared for his life.

Hours after speaking to reporters, Tillakaratne was asked to appear before the police Criminal Investigation Department late on Tuesday.

"We want to record his statement as part of our investigations into his claims that certain cricket matches were fixed," police spokesman Prishantha Jayakody told news agency AFP.

Tillakaratne's allegations have raised a storm, with former skipper Kumar Sangakkara challenging him to prove his claims.

"It's interesting to see what he has to say and if he has anything more than allegations," said Sangakkara, who quit as captain after Sri Lanka's defeat to India in the World Cup final.

"It's dangerous to throw names around."

Source:
AFP
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