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Karachi, May 21 (IANS) Under-fire Pakistan wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal Friday dismissed allegations of match-fixing against him and said he has always tried to give his best for the country.
'I don't even think about these things, I just concentrate on my performances,' Kamran said in an interview in his hometown Lahore. 'For me not being able to win the Twenty20 World Cup despite the team playing well is heartbreaking enough.
'I have always played for my country and I have already told the PCB about my performances in Australia. Whoever is now making allegations is free to do so but must also prove them.'
Kamran has been singled out as the main figure in the latest match-fixing scandal to have hit Pakistan cricket. Doubts have been raised about his shoddy performance behind the stumps during the tour of Australia from December to February and especially in the second Test in Sydney in which he dropped three easy catches and missed a run-out.
His poor showing allowed the Aussies to bounce back from the jaws of defeat to win the Test. Later, Australia completed a whitewash against the Pakistan winning all the three Tests, five one-dayers and a Twenty20 game.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) launched a probe into the debacle in February and later banned or fined seven of the country's leading cricketers for offences relating from indiscipline to ball-tampering. Match-fixing, was however, never mentioned by the board as a reason for the punishments.
PCB chairman Ijaz Butt On Friday reiterated that there was no evidence of match-fixing against any of the current Pakistan team players. He also stressed that the issue has been closed.
'The Australian tour chapter is now closed and we have finished our inquiry. We have found no evidence of any match-fixing during the tour,' he stressed.
Kamran was one of seven players punished by the PCB following the tour of Australia. Recently leaked video footage of the PCB probe showed Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam and assistant coach Aaqib Javed, who were sacked after the Australian tour, expressed doubt over Kamran's performance in that match.
More recently, the International Cricket Council's Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) announced Thursday it is investigating the tour to establish whether Pakistan's performance was the result of what it called a 'dysfunctional' team or 'something more serious'.
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