Cricket: Inzamam cleared of ball tampering [+video]

LONDON - Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has been cleared of ball tampering by the International Cricket Council (ICC) but banned for four one-day internationals for bringing the game into disrepute.

After a two-day hearing at The Oval, ICC match referee Ranjan Madugalle concluded that Pakistan had not interfered illegally with the ball in the fourth test against England last month.

But he decided that Inzamam had acted improperly by refusing to take his team on to the field after the tea interval on the fourth day.

England were awarded the match on a forfeit, the first in cricket history, after the Pakistan protest which followed a decision by umpires Darrell Hair and Billy Doctrove to change the ball and penalise the tourists five runs.

Pakistan were particularly incensed by Hair's role at The Oval and today the ICC announced that the Australian would not umpire in next month's Champions Trophy in India for "safety and security" reasons.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) have already asked the ICC to omit Hair from any future games involving Hair and this week the Indian board said he should be left of the Champions Trophy umpires' panel.

Today's four-match ban was the lowest possible penalty for Inzamam and PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan expressed satisfaction with the ICC decision.

We feel totally vindicated on the basic issue of ball tampering," Khan told a news conference.

No appeal

Inzamam told Geo television he would not appeal against the ban, which rules him out of the group matches and the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy.

In a statement Madugalle said he was not satisfied that there was sufficient evidence that the fielding team had interfered with the condition of the ball.

The hearing had taken evidence from several expert witnesses, including former England batsmen Geoff Boycott and John Hampshire and television analyst Simon Hughes.

"In my judgement, the marks are consistent with normal wear and tear of a match ball after 56 overs as they are with deliberate human intervention," Madugalle said.

On the second charge, Madugalle said he had taken into account an expression of regret and apology from Inzamam.

"And I take into account all the other surrounding and mitigating circumstances," he said. "I decide that Mr ul-Haq should be banned for four one-day international matches with immediate effect."

Hair, who was embroiled in further controversy when the ICC revealed he had offered to retire in exchange for $500,000, told a news conference there had been "absolutely no bias" in his actions at The Oval.

He said the umpires' code of conduct did not allow him to comment on his reasons for changing the ball but added he now had no plans to retire.

"I love the game and I love umpiring," he said.

Khan told a news conference Pakistan were satisfied that the hearing and the decisions had been fair. He said officials would examine the full judgement before deciding whether to make an appeal.

He said Inzamam's captaincy would not be affected by the hearing or the result.

Khan said Hair had umpired tests involving Pakistan in four successive series.

"Pakistan has had a problem with his attitude," he said, without elaborating. "He was a timebomb waiting to go off and it went off."

- REUTERS