Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt has revealed left-arm paceman Wahab Riaz will be questioned by police next week as part of the ongoing probe into spot-fixing.

Butt also confirmed no charges as yet had been levelled against the three cricketers who have already given statements to Scotland Yard.

Pakistan skipper Salman Butt and seamers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir have been charged and provisionally suspended by the International Cricket Council’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) for alleged spot-fixing during the fourth Test against England following a News of the World undercover investigation into illegal bookmakers.

Speaking to reporters in Lahore, Butt said: “Police have also requested that Wahab Riaz be made available for interview on September 14. No charges have been levelled against the players.”

Turmoil

Cricket was thrown into turmoil when the News of the World claimed journalists posing as Far Eastern businessmen paid a middleman to arrange for Pakistan players to deliberately bowl no-balls.

Agent Mazhar Majeed, a 35-year-old property tycoon who owns Croydon Athletic Football Club, was questioned by police in connection with the inquiry and released on bail without charge.

PCB chairman Butt, who arrived back in Pakistan from London on September 8 to be greeted at the airport by angry jeers from a group of gatherers, has insisted he is determined to get to the root of the issue.

He added: “After the meeting with Scotland Yard and ICC, the boys were released and no charges were levelled against them.

“While they were being interviewed, our Pakistan lawyer Mr Rizvi and our British lawyer Lady Elizabeth Robertson were present. A complete transcript of the meeting will be given to us shortly and permitted portions will be made public.

“After the meeting we had a detailed discussion with our British lawyer and we were of the opinion that if the boys are charged then we will require separate solicitors for each of them.

“With the help of our high commission and Additional Attorney-General of Pakistan, K K Agha, we finalised the list of solicitors on 7th September to represent our cricketers.

“We will continue to co-operate with the police as we also want to get to the

bottom of the matter. Rest assured we will not leave any stone unturned to find the truth.”

On being asked whether Pakistan will have any inquiry of its own, Butt said that as the ICC was looking into the matter, they could not hold a parallel investigation.

Return home

He also added that the PCB were hoping to bring home the three accused players as soon as possible.

“Since the players are neither being charged nor is there any restriction on their movement, we have informed the police that they will be travelling back to Pakistan in the next few days,” Butt said.

Pakistan team manager Yawar Saeed was unaware of the news about Riaz when quizzed on the matter on Thursday.

“I don’t know about this but I am sure they will tell me if it’s true,” he said.

Saeed added Riaz, dropped for Pakistan’s second NatWest International Twenty20 match in Cardiff last Tuesday, remains at present in contention to play in the first ODI on Friday.

“Unless he’s dropped, he will play,” said Saeed. “If I’m told ‘don’t play X, Y, Z’, they won’t play.

“If I’m not told, I’ll select the best team. But I’ve not been told anything. Let’s wait.”

Paul Stirling hammered 177 as Ireland claimed a share of their one-day series against Canada with a 92-run success in the second match.

Opening batsman Stirling struck 21 fours and five sixes during a 134-ball contribution, providing the cornerstone of Ireland’s total of 325-8 after they had been sent in by their hosts at the Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club.

He shared half-century stands with Andre Botha (28), Andrew Poynter (30) and Nigel Jones (25) for the first three wickets respectively, laying the foundation of Ireland’s biggest ever score in one-day internationals.

Stirling, who was finally dismissed by Harvir Singh Baidwan (3-60) in the 45th over, also inked his name into the record books by surpassing the previous highest effort by an Irishman in the format, Kevin O’Brien’s 142.

In reply, off-spinner Albert van der Merwe claimed career-best figures of 5-49 to ruin Canada’s hopes.

Only Ruvinda Gunasekera (59) and Ashish Bagai (44) made much impression, the third-wicket pair adding 79 before Van der Merwe removed both.

Canada were eventually all out for 233 in 46.3 overs.

England completed a comfortable series sweep over Pakistan with a six-wicket win in the second Twenty20 international in Cardiff.

The tourists mustered just 89 after winning the toss and opting to bat first, comfortably their lowest ever total in the shortest form of the game.

Tim Bresnan led the way with 3-10 while fellow seamers Ryan Sidebottom and Stuart Broad and spinner Graeme Swann chipped in with two wickets apiece.

Although England lost four wickets in their run chase they were never in danger, Eoin Morgan and Michael Yardy once again seeing them home.

Dominant

The final margin of victory did little to justify how dominant the home side had been at the Swalec Stadium, starting with a fine display with the ball.

Their bid to clinch a record-equalling seventh straight triumph in Twenty20 cricket didn’t get off to the greatest of starts – Sidebottom conceding 11 runs in the opening over – but it wasn’t long before Pakistan were in trouble.

Bresnan struck with his fourth delivery, getting Kamran Akmal to mis-hit a pull shot high into the air for Swann to safely catch moving around from mid-on.

The Yorkshireman struck again in his second over – Mohammad Yousuf holing out to Ravi Bopara – as Pakistan crumbled to 22-4 inside the powerplay overs.

Shahzaib Hasan featherd a hook off Broad through to wicketkeeper Steven Davies and having promoted himself up the order, visiting skipper Shahid Afridi fell in the same over for just two when he skied a catch to Morgan.

Umar Akmal, who top-scored with 17, briefly threatened a revival with two straight sixes off Swann, though the bowler had his revenge.

Having gone for a maximum off the previous ball, the off-spinner threw up the next delivery higher and wider, tempting Akmal to go for broke again. Instead he missed it completely, swinging himself around to see his stumps disturbed.

Mohammad Hafeez was run out following a painstaking 14 off 32 balls, while Fawad Alam lasted just one – edging through to wicketkeeper Davies to give Swann his second wicket of the innings.

Sidebottom claimed two wickets in successive balls before Bresnan wrapped things up in the 19th over, clean bowling Shoaib Akhtar with a wonderful yorker.

Rousing start

Left to chase very little England gave the sparse crowd something to cheer about with a rousing start to their run chase, Craig Kieswetter belting a six and two fours to help take 19 from the second over, bowled by Umar Gul.

However the opener was run out for 16 in the next over at the non-striker’s end by Umar Akmal’s direct hit, his departure coming straight after Davies had clipped Akhtar to mid-wicket.

Ravi Bopara and Paul Collingwood then took a cautious approach to gathering runs, the former making just 12 from 24 deliveries.

Neither man made it through to the end, though, meaning Morgan had to come out and finish the job again. The Irish-born left-hander made a breezy 18 not out, including two lovely lofted drives down the ground.

Yardy sealed the victory with an all-run four, England getting home with 36 balls to spare. Pakistan will hope to put up more of a fight in the five-match NatWest Series, starting with the opening game in Durham on Friday.

Geoff Lawson, the former Australian fast bowler and Pakistan coach, has criticised the PCB and its chairman, Ijaz Butt, for failing to provide the strong leadership that the country needs during one of its biggest challenges. Lawson said Pakistan had put in place terrific 10 to 15-year plans to develop the game from the grassroots up, but since the appointment of Butt in 2008 there has been a decline with the PCB becoming virtually “non-functioning”.

“Even through this crisis we have heard virtually nothing from their chairman,” Lawson said on ESPNcricinfo’s audio show Time Out. “He hides from a crisis, he is not a leader and when Pakistan need a strong leader and people to show them the way forward, they are not getting it from their board.”

Test captain Salman Butt and fast bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were charged under the ICC’s anti-corruption code and provisionally suspended from the game while their case is being heard. However, Lawson said Salman Butt had done a great job with a young side since being appointed captain of Pakistan and that he would be shocked if Butt turned out to be at the center of the spot-fixing scandal.

“If it is the case that these young players are being affected, then there is something very bad with the environment in which Pakistan cricket is being played in.”

Given the stakes, Lawson said the current crisis is the greatest Pakistan cricket has faced, and unlike previous crises, the team will not have the opportunity to mend fences by playing matches at home once things calm down.

“The hearings on Asif, Amir and Salman will be extremely important,” he said. “I hope against hope that things will turn out alright but this is very much a watershed for Pakistan cricket right now.”