Pakistan quartet under the microscope over allegations

Who are the four Pakistan players named by the News of the World over spot-fixing allegations?

The quartet were interviewed by the police on Saturday night, with captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif also having their mobile phones confiscated.

MOHAMMAD AMIR

Still only 18, during day two of the second Test at Lord's the left-arm paceman became the youngest bowler in Test history to take 50 wickets.

He went on to take his best Test figures, picking up 6-84 in England's only innings, and is currently ranked the eighth-best bowler in Test cricket.

He made both his Test and one-day debuts in July 2009 and has gone on to snare 51 Test wickets at a shade over 29 runs apiece, and has a further 25 victims in one-day internationals.

Born in Gujjar Khan, Punjab, he has a whippy action that enables him to swing the ball both ways at a lively pace that can touch 90mph.

Of the three no-balls bowled which led to the investigation, Amir is alleged to have bowled two of them, one on Thursday and one on Friday.

MOHAMMAD ASIF

A controversial figure who has twice been suspended after testing positive for banned substances - although one ban was subsequently overturned - and who was also detained in Dubai for suspected possession of illegal drugs.

He is a fine swing bowler who can manipulate the ball sufficiently at no more than medium pace - he says "pace is nothing" - to remove the very best at Test level.

Although he could bowl quicker he is happy to hover about the 80mph mark and his guile and ability to move the ball both ways have brought him 106 Test wickets at an average of 24.36.

Now 27 he made his Test debut in 2005 and is currently ranked third in the ICC bowling rankings.

He is alleged to have bowled one of the three no-balls in question on Thursday, the first day of the Test at Lord's.

SALMAN BUTT

The 25-year-old was only appointed Pakistan's Test captain in July after Shahid Afridi stepped down from the role - after a single game in charge - following their defeat in the first game of their two-Test series against Australia earlier this year.

Butt had previously been appointed vice-captain at the beginning of the tour after a number of senior players were discarded following what turned out to be a disastrous trip down under.

A stylish if inconsistent left-hander, who averages 30.43 from 30 Tests, he has proved more successful in ODIs, scoring 2,725 runs at an average of 36.82, including eight centuries.

He made his debut back in 2003 but was in and out of the side for several years until nailing down a regular place in 2007.

Along with Amir and Asif, Butt has had his telephone taken away by police but he said: "These are just allegations and anybody can stand out and say anything about you, it doesn't make them true."

KAMRAN AKMAL

The wicketkeeper was interviewed by the police along with the other three on Saturday night.

Kamran, older brother of batsman Umar, is renowned more for the explosive nature of his batting than the quality of his glovework.

At 28 he has already played 53 Tests and 118 ODIs, adding 184 Test catches and 22 stumpings to his 2,648 runs at 30.79 in the longest form of the game.

He was fined and put on probation by the Pakistan authorities after their dire tour of Australia in 2009-10 and a poor all-round display in the first Test against England led to him being dropped, only for the broken finger suffered by his replacement, Zulqarnain Haider, to see him recalled for the third Test.

He made his debut back in 2002, with the biggest of his six Test centuries the unbeaten 158 he scored against Sri Lanka in 2009.

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Sharapova returns to Tokyo for Pan Pacific Open

Tokyo:  Defending champion Maria Sharapova will return to Tokyo next month, spearheading the star-studded Pan Pacific Open women's tennis tournament, organisers said on Monday.

Twenty-seven players out of the current world top 30 will take part in the two-million-dollar hard court tournament from September 26 to October 2, with only Kim Clijsters, Venus Williams and Justine Henin missing.

Sharapova captured her first WTA singles and doubles titles at the 2003 Japan Open, and also won her first professional title on the ITF Circuit series in Gunma, north of Tokyo, a year earlier.

The Russian heart-throb has won four titles in Tokyo out of her 22 WTA titles, including the Japan Open twice and the 2005 Pan Pacific.

Last year, Sharapova put an end to a long lay-off caused by a shoulder injury by winning her first title since Amelia Island in April 2008, beating Jelena Jankovic of Serbia in the final.

Along side world number one Serena Williams, the singles field includes former Pan Pacific champions Elena Dementieva of Russia, the Beijing Olympic gold medallist who won here in 2006.

Other former champions are Japan's Kimiko Date Krumm, the winner in 1995, and Dinara Safina of Russia, the winner in 2008. Both picked up a wild card.

Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic and Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria, who caused a sensation by reaching the semi-finals at Wimbledon, will make their Japan debuts.

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/sports/sharapova-returns-to-tokyo-for-pan-pacific-open-46641?cp

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/sports/sharapova-returns-to-tokyo-for-pan-pacific-open-46641?cp

Sehwag remains second in ICC Test rankings

Dashing opener Virender Sehwag is the highest-ranked Indian batsman at the second spot in the latest ICC Test rankings issued on Sunday.

Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara leads the batting table with Michael Clarke of Australia on the third spot.

In the bowling list, Pakistan's fast bowler Mohammad Amir has rocketed to a career-best 17th after playing a leading role in his side's four-wicket victory over England in The Oval Test which concluded on Saturday.

ICC RANKINGS

Man of the match Amir took 1-49 and 5-52 in the Test and was awarded with a jump of 14 places in the rankings, which puts him just behind Paul Harris of South Africa and makes him the third Pakistan fast bowler in the top 20.

For England, off-spinner Graeme Swann has moved up one place to regain his second position on the bowling chart.

Swann, who had match figures of 7-118, had first climbed to second position in March this year after the first Test against Bangladesh in Chittagong.

In the Rankings for batsmen, Pakistan's Mohammad Yousuf, Umar Akmal and Azhar Ali, and England's Alastair Cook and Matt Prior all rose up the rankings.

Yousuf, who scored 56 and 33, has climbed two places to 14th position with India's Gautam Gambhir firmly within his sights. Umar has jumped six places to share 41st position with Australia's Phillip Hughes and Azhar has vaulted 28 places to 55th spot.

There is no change in the top five of the Reliance Mobile ICC Player rankings for Test all-rounders with Jacques Kallis of South Africa leading the field.

Meanwhile, England's four-wicket defeat has ended its chances of moving ahead of fourth-placed Australia in the ICC Test Championship.