‘Banned’ Salman Butt lands job as Pak TV channel’s World Cup expert

LAHORE - Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt, who was banned for 10 years for his involvement in a spot-fixing scam, has been signed up by Pakistan’s Channel 5 to be their expert commentator during the upcoming World Cup.

“I have signed a contract with a television channel to do expert commentary. As I am not playing in the event I thought it was worth participating as an expert,” the Courier Mail quoted Butt, as saying.

The 26-year-old further said that he wanted to continue being involved in the game despite the ban.

“My career is with cricket and I will play cricket, just for the World Cup I want to turn as expert,” he added.

He also hopes that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and International Cricket Council (ICC) would not object on his new role.

An ICC anti-corruption tribunal, chaired by Michael Beloff, had found Butt and fast bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif guilty of charges relating to spot-fixing in the Lord’s Test match between England and Pakistan played in August last year.

In addition, Butt was also found guilty of breaching the ICC anti-corruption code by failing to report an approach made to him by British-based bookmaker Mazhar Majeed to engage in corrupt activity during The Oval Test match earlier in the same month.

The 26-year-old was given a 10-year ban from any involvement in cricketing activities, five years of which were suspended on condition that, throughout that period, he commits no further breach of the code and that he participates, under the auspices of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), in a programme of anti-corruption education. (ANI)