Cricket: Scandal pursues tour squad

NZ-bound Umar Akmal has been named in the match-fixing claims. Photo / Getty Images

Pakistan have named two of their three squads to tour New Zealand this summer - and bang on cue are more allegations of players involved in match rigging.

A Pakistani TV channel has broadcast previously unseen footage of Mazhar Majeed, the agent at the centre of the spot-fixing scandal which has had three top players suspended by the International Cricket Council, claiming to have four others involved.

Those four are brothers Umar and Kamran Akmal, left-arm bowler Wahab Riaz and opener Imran Farhat. Of those, the dashing young batsman Umar Akmal and Riaz are in the test and T20 squads named yesterday to come to New Zealand.

The video footage was shown on Geo news channel and shows Majeed explaining his strategy of targeting young players. "It's long-term thinking," he said on the recording. "These boys are going to be around years and I've got the best boys."

Pakistan are already without their fine new-ball double act of Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer - under ICC investigation over allegations they bowled no balls to order in Pakistan's test series against England this year - and leading batsman Salman Butt.

Both wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal and Riaz were interviewed in England at the time of that bustup, brought on by revelations in the News of the World newspaper.

Pakistan's test squad includes classy veteran and former captain Younis Khan, who averages 50.37 in tests and is now back in favour in the muddled world of that country's cricket politics.

But they will be without ageing middle-order star Mohammad Yousuf.

Yousuf, Pakistan's third-highest test runscorer and averaging 52.29, has been ruled out on fitness grounds and might have reached the end of a stellar international career.

A third Akmal brother, wicketkeeper Adnan, is coming and the test 14 includes just four players - captain Misban-ul-Haq, Umar Akmal and bowlers Umar Gul and offspinner Saeed Ajmal - who were here last summer.

There are two specialist spinners, Ajmal and left-armer Abdur Rehman, and four fast-medium options. Legspinner Danish Kaneria, who took 13 wickets in two tests last summer, has been dropped.

Dynamic allrounder Shahid Afridi leads the T20 squad, who start the tour against Auckland at Colin Maiden Park on December 23.

That group includes fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, now 35.

The ODI squad to play six games against New Zealand is due to be named before the second test starts at the Basin Reserve on January 15.