Pakistan cricket players meet authorities in betting probe

Pakistan cricketers Mohammad Aamer, Mohammad Asif and captain Salman Butt leave the team hotel on

London, England- Three Pakistan cricket players at the center of an alleged betting scandal were meeting their country's cricket authorities Thursday morning in London.
The talks at the Pakistani High Commission will
examine accusations that the players deliberately made mistakes during last week's match against England as part of a scam.
Though no disciplinary decision has yet been made regarding the three players, they will not be playing on the rest of the team's tour in Britain, team manager Yawar Saeed said Thursday.
"We'll ask for a replacement to make up the squad of 16," Saeed told reporters at the team's game in Taunton, England, where the squad was playing against local team Somerset. "The team is today 13 (and) will become 16 again with replacement."
Saeed would not answer repeated questions about whether the three players -- Salman Butt, Mohammed Asif, and Mohammed Amir -- were officially suspended.

Pakistani High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hassan told reporters as he arrived for the meeting that the players had not been suspended.
The betting allegations emerged Sunday in the British tabloid News of the World, which reported that two Pakistan players deliberately bowled "no balls," or fouls, during their test series with England in London last week. It said the alleged ringleader made 150,000 pounds ($232,800) in the scam.
England won the match at Lord's Cricket Ground. It ended Sunday afternoon, after the scandal broke.
London's Metropolitan Police have already questioned the three players, along with team manager Yawar Saeed, he said this week.
Several people have been arrested in connection with the case. The Met Police arrested a 35-year-old man late Saturday on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud bookmakers and released on bail Sunday, and customs officials arrested three people Sunday on suspicion of money-laundering.
The head of cricket's world governing body said Tuesday he wants prompt disciplinary action if anyone on the Pakistan team was involved in the alleged betting scheme.
"The integrity of the game is of paramount importance," said Haroon Lorgat, chief executive of the International Cricket Council. "Prompt and decisive action will be taken against those who seek to harm it. However, the facts must first be established through a thorough investigation and it is important to respect the right of due process when addressing serious allegations of this sort."
Investigators from the cricket council are already in the United Kingdom making inquiries into the allegations, the council said Tuesday. They are working with the Met Police on the criminal investigation, according to the council.

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