SLC to take maximum precautions against bookies in T20 WC

The Sri Lankan Cricket Board says that it would take "maximum precautions" to ensure that "unwanted elements" were not involved in the game.

New Delhi: Amid reports of bookies planning to target the Twenty20 Cricket World Cup in Sri Lanka later in the year, the Sri Lankan Cricket Board on Monday said that it would take "maximum precautions" to ensure that "unwanted elements" were not involved in the game.

Reports in the media said that bookies could assemble in the island nation during the September 18 to October 7 Twenty20 World Cup to fix matches and to counter that the SLC have made elaborate plans. SLC Secretary Nishantha Ranatunga, however, maintained that he did not know of any such plan as of now but would take "maximum precautions" to ensure that the bookies are not involved in the game. "We have not heard of anything of that sort. It is a normal process we follow with the help of intelligence agencies of Sri Lanka and with the ICC to keep a tab on people coming and what are happening," he said. "For T20 World Cup we have not heard of anything like that. That is not in the agenda and no a passing remark has been made till now. But we will take maximum precautions to keep unwanted elements out of the game and with the players and officials," Ranatunga said. Reports also said that ICC`s Anti Corruption Unit had met Delhi Police Crime Branch officials around March end regarding any information about plan by bookies to become active during the T20 World Cup. PTI