Pakistan cricketers free to leave UK, police say

The Pakistan cricket team have had a controversial past in recent times.

None of the players or team officials have been arrested, but four were questioned by police, Pakistan national team manager Yawar Saeed said Sunday.London, England -- Players of the Pakistan cricket team, who are at the

center of a betting scandal in the United Kingdom, were told on Monday they were free to leave the country according to London's Metropolitan Police.

Another man was arrested Saturday and released on bail Sunday.

The police investigation comes after allegations that gamblers fixed part of a Pakistan match against England in London last week.

A British tabloid newspaper reported Sunday that two Pakistan players deliberately bowled "no balls" -- a foul -- during the four-day series.

Can cricket survive in Pakistan?

A "no ball" is when the bowler -- the equivalent of a pitcher in baseball -- steps over the line as he throws the ball. The batting team gets a run when that happens.

The British tabloid News of the World posted what it said was a video of an undercover reporter meeting with a man identified as Mazhar Majeed, who tells the reporter exactly which bowlers would bowl "no balls" and when, then lays out 14 thick stacks of bills on a table.

The video of the meeting -- which the newspaper said took place Wednesday, the day before the final match of the four Test series between Pakistan and England began -- is intercut with clips from the following two days, where the players perform as Majeed said they would.

The tabloid also says the alleged ringleader pocketed 150,000 British pounds (U.S. $232,800) in the scam.

London's Metropolitan Police said a 35-year-old man was arrested late Saturday on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud bookmakers, and released on bail Sunday.

Police said no date had been set for a hearing or further proceedings, but that the investigation was continuing.

A source familiar with the investigation named the man who was arrrested as Mazhar Majeed.

No players or team officials have been arrested, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said Sunday.

But police questioned Pakistan team manager Saeed, captain Salman Butt, and two other players, Saeed told reporters Sunday.

He did not name the other two players at the news conference, but Britain's Press Association earlier reported that he had said they were bowlers Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asaf.

Police refused to confirm to CNN who was being questioned.

Team captain Butt said Pakistan gave 100 percent throughout a match. "We have given our best," Butt said after his team lost to England.

The team manager refused to comment on the report that any of the squad's players intentionally committed three fouls during the match.

"No allegations are true until they are proved either way," said Saeed. "So that this point in time they are just allegations. Let's wait until the case is complete."

England beat Pakistan in the four-day match at Lord's cricket ground, which ended Sunday afternoon, after the scandal broke.

Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari ordered an investigation into the scandal, his spokesman said Sunday.

He directed the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to submit a preliminary report "immediately," Farhatullah Babar said, adding that Zardari asked to be kept informed about any British investigations as well.

Sam Peters, News of the World's cricket correspondent, told CNN that the tabloid did not "drive these events ... these events were going to happen regardless of whether the News of the World was involved."

But, he said, staffers believed the story was in the public interest.

"It's a legitimate story to get to the bottom of something that's been plaguing our sport," he said. "... It's swirled around, and the innuendo's been there."

However, Shakil Shaikh, president of the Islamabad Regional Cricket Association, told CNN that while he is "shocked" at the news, "no proof has been given of the involvement of these players in the match-fixing issue" and he has seen no concrete evidence against the cricketers.

He said if evidence does surface, an investigation will be launched.

It is the second allegation of corruption directed at the Pakistan cricket team this year.

News of the World does not allege that gamblers fixed the results of the England match -- only that specific moments in the match were fixed, a practice known as "spot-fixing" rather than "match-fixing."

Betting on cricket matches is legal in England.

The News of the World report was co-authored by Mazher Mahmood, a controversial figure in British journalism who has used undercover video in the past.

He was responsible for a report in May that revealed Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson offered to sell access to her former husband, Prince Andrew.