DeSilva says he was
offered bribes
Former Sri Lanka vice-captain Aravinda DeSilva says he was approached by bookmakers with offers to fix matches but denied accepting bribes, officials in Colombo said on Friday.
DeSilva, who is alleged to have accepted 15,000 dollars in 1994 to lose a Test match in favour of India, flatly denied ever taking money, although he said he had been approached to fix matches, a cricket official said.
He said DeSilva had gone on two local television stations late on Thursday to deny the allegations personally. The former player was not immediately available for comment on Friday.
The Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka has asked India to help probe allegations that World Cup-winning skipper Arjuna Ranatunga and his deputy, DeSilva, were involved in match-fixing.
The BCCSL asked its Indian counterpart for copies of a report published on Wednesday by the Central Bureau of Investigation that probed corruption in cricket.
"The BCCSL requires to obtain immediately a copy of the 162-page report and relevant authenticated transcripts of evidence," said Sri Lanka's cricket chief Thilanga Sumathipala in a letter to his Indian counterpart A. C Muthiah.
Sri Lanka's Ranatunga, 36, who retired from international cricket in August, said he had never had any dealings with bookmakers nor was he ever offered money to throw matches.
The BCCSL said they are still awaiting a response from the Indian cricket authorities.
A bookmaker, Mukesh Gupta, had claimed in a testimony published in the Central Bureau of Investigation report that Ranatunga and DeSilva helped him fix an Indian victory in the Lucknow Test in 1994.
Gupta had said DeSilva was paid 15,000 dollars, but it was not immediately clear if there were any direct allegations against Ranatunga, who led Sri Lanka to World Cup victory in 1996.
Sumathipala said the Indian report had not made it clear which of the Sri Lankan players had taken money or turned down offers of bribes.
"The two cricketers are highly respected and loved by the Sri Lankan public, and the BCCSL is quite concerned to have this matter expeditiously and correctly examined," Sumathipala said.
Sri Lanka's cricket board set up an independent panel in July to investigate and prevent match-fixing, which is plaguing the sport worldwide.
The board appointed a five-member panel headed by a retired supreme court judge to draft a code of conduct for players.
Mail Cricket Editor
