In a surprising move, Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Ijaz Butt has retracted his earlier statements on England team's involvement in match fixing. He had earlier said that the England cricket team was paid "enormous amounts of money" to lose The Oval match in the one day series between the two countries.
England went on to clinch the series 3-2 and also won the preceding test series. Butt's comments added another layer of controversy in the already muddied cricket climate. The England and Wales Cricket Board had threatened to file a defamation suit had Butt refused to apologize "unreservedly".
The apology came after a meeting with his English counterpart Giles Clarke in London on Wednesday.
"I wish personally and on behalf of the Pakistan Cricket Board to withdraw the comments I made concerning the England and Wales Cricket Board and each of the England players who played in the one-day international at The Oval on Friday 17 September," he said in a statement released after the meeting.
He added that his earlier statements were based on speculations by the bookies and not on any concrete evidence.
Pakistan has been under fire ever since allegations of spot fixing surfaced against its key players during the last test match at The Lords. The ICC suspended the Test Captain Salman Butt, and ace bowlers Muhammad Amir, and Muhammad Asif based on these claims. Pakistan has not seen any international team visiting the country ever since the terror attacks on the Sri Lankan Cricket Team in 2009.
