Former Pakistani cricketer Danish Kaneria has reached out to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, seeking their assistance in his quest to overturn the lifetime ban imposed on him by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2012, related to his involvement in spot-fixing.
In a recent interview, Kaneria made a heartfelt plea to the Indian leadership and the BCCI, expressing his hope that they could intervene in his case and potentially lead to the lifting of the ban that has cast a shadow over his cricketing career.
“I would like to appeal to Prime Minister Modi and the BCCI to help me remove the ban that was imposed on me by the ECB,” Kaneria stated during the interview.
A decade ago, Kaneria found himself on the receiving end of a lifetime suspension from the ECB after being found guilty of two instances of spot-fixing. His teammate at the time, Mervyn Westfield, received a five-year ban after admitting to a single offense.
‘Help me remove the ban’ – Danish Kaneria urges India PM Narendra Modi, BCCI to help him remove ban by ECB
— CrickologyNews (@CrickologyNews) October 26, 2023
“I would like to appeal to Prime Minister Modi and the BCCI to help me remove the ban that was imposed on me by the ECB,” Danish Kaneria was quoted as saying by AajTak. pic.twitter.com/p4QMksdTp6
The ECB’s decision to impose a ban on Kaneria stemmed from evidence suggesting his involvement in persuading Westfield to accept money in exchange for intentionally allowing a predetermined number of runs during an over in a match against Durham in 2009. This act was deemed a severe breach of the sport’s integrity.
In 2018, after several years of silence, Kaneria came forward and publicly admitted his role in the scandal, acknowledging it as “the biggest mistake of my life.” Now, the former cricketer seeks redemption and envisions a path back into the world of cricket, with the hope that Indian authorities can play a pivotal role in his journey of revival.