Published: Apr 17, 2013, 01:14 AM (IST)
Edited: Apr 17, 2013, 01:14 AM (IST)
Danish Kaneria has a final chance to get the life ban imposed on him by England and Wales Cricket Board overturned at the appeal hearing on April 22 © Getty Images
Karachi: Apr 16, 2013
Pakistan‘s disgraced leg-spinner Danish Kaneria has complained that he had not received any support from anyone, including the Cricket Board, in his fight to prove his innocence in the spot fixing case in England.
Kaneria, who will leave later tonight for London to attend his appeal hearing on April 22, said it had been a tough last few years for him.
“It has been tough time emotionally as my family has suffered and financially as well. It has cost a lot in both ways to fight this case to prove my innocence,” Kaneria said.
Kaneria, 33, has a final chance to get the life ban imposed on him by England and Wales Cricket Board overturned at the appeal hearing.
The appeal hearing was initially set for last December but has been delayed due to the reluctance of ECB‘s star witness Mervyn Westfield to appear at the hearing which is being heard by an independent panel.
The ECB disciplinary panel had last year banned Kaneria for life from playing in the United Kingdom and also imposed a fine of 100,000 pounds to cover costs after finding Kaneria guilty of encouraging his former Essex teammate Westfield to do spot fixing in a county match in 2009.
“I am pretty confident of getting this ban overturned because Westfield has been reluctant to come forward and be cross examined by my lawyers. It was on the basis of his testimony last year that the ECB banned me,” Kaneria said.
“I don’t know why he has kept on avoiding the appeal hearing,” he added.
The ECB has now summoned Westfield to testify at the appeal hearing through a high court order but it is still not clear whether Westfield’s lawyer Yasin Patel will make him available for the hearing.
Kaneria’s lawyer Faroogh Naseem has said that if the ECB can’t make Westfield available for the appeal hearing then there was no case against his client and the ban will be overturned.
“My client has full right under the law to cross examine the star witness of the ECB,” he said.
