Pakistani paceman Rana Naved-ul-Hasan has rubbished claims about his involvement in match-fixing during the recently concluded Bangladesh Premier League Twenty20 tournament.
Rana, who was a part of the Dhaka Gladiators team, got involved into this scandal after Bangladesh police arrested a man named Sajid Khan from Pakistan on spot-fixing charges during an important fixture in the BPL. And Rana had been photographed with Khan in the past.
Khan, who is under custody after the ruling given by a court in Dhaka, was spotted while allegedly making many phone calls while sitting in the stands for a BPL match.
But Rana distanced himself from the case by stating that he did not know Mr. Khan personally. He said that he was unaware of how this one-time fan he met in Karachi managed to get his email address.
Rana was quoted by Pakpassion.net as saying: “The authorities in Bangladesh showed me a picture of the man they had arrested. I informed them that I had met him at a domestic match in Karachi last year. That day, after the domestic match he had approached me along with many other individuals as a fan. I have never seen him since then.”
He added, “I have provided the Bangladeshi authorities with the information they needed from me. I have no idea how he obtained my email address.”
Rana had a successful stint in the BPL’s inaugural season as he played for the Gladiators, the team which won the tournament held in Bangladesh. He believes that the amount of success achieved by the BPL in its first season in praiseworthy.
Heaping more praise on the tournament and its organizers, Rana hoped that it becomes a tournament with a regular place in the international calendar of cricket. Rana added that it was surprising to know that so many international players from around the world featured in the BPL.