Match-fixing in Pakistan Super League? ICC's ACU head Alex Marshall makes a shocking claim

The head of the International Cricket Council's (ICC) Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) Alex Marshall has made a shocking claim about some of the badly-run lower level franchise leagues.

Marshall claimed that these leagues are often the targets of the corrupters, who are continuously looking for a way in.

The rise of franchise leagues in the game of cricket has given financial stability to many cricket boards.

Over the years, the cricket boards have relished the opportunity to start their franchise leagues, which often leads to a significant amount of revenue.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is probably the biggest example that has transformed the sport into a commercial powerhouse. The growth of IPL is a great example of what a successful franchise league can do.

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Alex Marshall makes a shocking claim about franchise leagues

But with its advantages, it also has its disadvantages. With the advent of franchise leagues, the ICC's ACU has been under constant supervision for cases like match-fixing. Recently, Alex Marshall spoke about some of the lower-level franchise leagues.

He warned that the corrupters are continuously looking to disrupt the clean game and some of the badly lower-level leagues are the targets most often. He further added that these things won't end as there is money involved in these leagues.

“I am confident that the cricket you watch is safe and clean. But I am also absolutely sure that corruptors are constantly looking for a route into the game, particularly in badly run lower-level franchise leagues. The threat to the game is corruptors won’t go away while there is always money to be made and they will look for weakness in the system to get in,” Marshall was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.

Alex Marshall has decided to announce his retirement after seven years. During his stint, he has also been a part of the ACU's investigations in Sri Lanka regarding match-fixing. After the investigations, Sri Lanka became the first South Asian nation to criminalize offenses related to match-fixing.

Alex Marshall proud of the approach of modern-day cricketers

Marshall also lauded the significant development in the game where cricketers are more open to the unit and report any approaches made to them rather than taking it for granted. He also spoke about educating the players about the methods through which they are approached by corrupters.

“I am proud of the significant increase in trust from players who now report approaches to us frequently whereas there was a time when they lacked confidence in confidentiality and the action that will be taken,” Marshall stated.

“They have now seen corruptors being disrupted, named, and banned when they get involved in cricket. And the education we now do with players shows them who the corruptors are, what their methods are, so everyone is much better equipped and protected to keep corruption away from the game,” he claimed.

Big decisions during Alex Marshall's tenure

During the tenure of Alex Marshall at the role of ICC's ACU, Bangladesh allrounder Shakib Al Hasan and late Zimbabwe allrounder Heath Streak were charged with match-fixing claims. Both the cricketers also accepted their offences.

While Shakib had failed to report the three approaches by the corrupters to the unit, Streak breached the ICC's Anti-Corruption Code five times which also involved taking a bitcoin from a corruptor.

According to the reports, Shakib Al Hasan failed to report two approaches during a tri-series between Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, and Sri Lanka in January 2018. The other breach was during the IPL 2018 match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kings XI Punjab. As a result, he was banned for two years.