London, June 18: In a startling revelations, the International Cricket Council's outgoing president Malcolm Gray has admitted that cricket boards of some Test playing nations have indulged in protecting their top cricketers in the match-fixing scandal. In an interview to an Australian daily, Gray regretted that this happened as the ICC and anti-corruption unit didn't have any legislative power. ''We cannot march into somebody's house and carry out a search or we cannot arrest people so we can only do it by investigation and by persuasion,'' Gray, whose completes his three-year term in his office tomorrow said.

Gray said the other reason was the tendency to protect the sporting hero. ''And that's the fans, the public and I think some of the authorities tend to as well,'' he noted. Highlighting the achievements during his tenure, gray said the crackdown on match-fixing was one of the major areas of success but was quick to point out that it was high time to ''draw a line in the sand'' and move on from the matter and find more culprits.

The outgoing president also admitted the existence of the growing divide in the ICC along racial lines. ''The problem lay in deep-rooted beliefs stemming from historical conflicts... It is human nature to flock together and grow a colour mentality... One thing I've learned in this job is just how racist people are. I didn't realise everybody was as racist as they are,'' he said.

He, however, took credit for ICC's ''timely intervention'' in penalising England and New Zealand for their decision not to play their respective world cup matches in Zimbabwe and Kenya earlier this year. ''This had the potential to further widen the gulf... But ICC's promptness averted a full-scale disaster,'' he added. Bureau Report