We Shouldn't Even Talk About Integrity in Pakistan Cricket: Salman Butt

Salman Butt, who banned for five years for his involvement in the 2010 spot-fixing scandal, has said that players who have served bans should be treated equally and not discriminated against

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New Delhi: When it comes to corruption activities linked with cricket, Pakistan has dealt with many big blows. Many Pakistani players who were involved in spot-fixing, were suspended by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for respective tenures but most of them have started playing competitive cricket after finishing their sentence. Former Pakistan skipper Salman Butt, who banned for five years for his involvement in 2010 spot-fixing scandal, has said that players who have served bans should be treated equally and not discriminated against. "As per the law that exists, players should be treated equally. Punishment implies that once you have served the time, you should be treated like any other player. I try not to get into this issue but I want to ask people who are talking about this whole episode. "Where does their integrity go when they are in the mix and working with those people? Where does their integrity go when they endorse players who get selected because of their connections and take the spot from deserving players? Where is their integrity when Pakistan cricket suffers because of the inabilities of these players who come into the side?" he asked. He also said that unlike former players who have been giving opinions on the matter should stay away and let the ICC and PCB decide. "They should talk after giving it some thought. If everyone starts saying things, then there would be no end. There have been many players who were added because of their connections as the 15th man in the squad. "There have been several players making comebacks without any meaningful performances. I don't take names but it is what it is. This issue is for the ICC and the PCB to handle and players have no right to speak on it," he said.