Kaneria Loses Latest Appeal

Former Pakistan international Danish Kaneria has lost his latest appeal against a life ban handed to him for breaching ECB anti-corruption regulations.

At an ECB (England & Wales Cricket Board) Cricket Discipline Commision Panel hearing in June 2012, Kaneria was found guilty of two charges relating to corrupt conduct during a one-day game between Durham and Essex in September 2009.

The panel imposed a life ban on Kaneria and he was ordered to pay £100,000 towards the ECB's legal costs.

Kaneria appealed that decision to a Cricket Discipline Commission Appeal Panel which was headed by His Honour Edward Slinger, a retired judge.

The hearing sat over five days in April 2013 and upheld the original life ban, and ordered Kaneria to pay a further £100,000 to cover the cost of the hearing.

In August 2013, Kaniera appealed to the High Court. He argued that the decisions of the Appeal Panel should be set aside, alleging that there had been serious irregularities and errors in law by the Panel.

This latest appeal was dismissed and the judgment published today by the High Court.

Commenting on Mr Justice Hamblen's decision, ECB Chief Executive David Collier says it is time for Kaneria to admit his guilt.

"This judgment re-affirms the previous findings of guilt and recognises that the two Cricket Discipline Commission Panels’ decisions to impose a life ban were proportionate to the seriousness of the offences.

"It also makes it abundantly clear that there was no error of law or irregularity involved in the disciplinary process.

"This case has now been considered by two different independent panels and an experienced High Court Judge.

"Today’s decision supports the outcome of the earlier hearings both of which led to a finding that Mr Kaneria acted as a recruiter of spot-fixers and exploited his status as an international player to engage a young county professional, Mervyn Westfield, in corrupt activity.

"Once again, in the light of Justice Hamblen’s ruling today and the overwhelming weight of evidence laid against him, we would urge Mr Kaneria to publicly admit his guilt in this matter, apologise for betraying the trust of his former team-mates at Essex and ask him to co-operate with both ECB and ICC in their ongoing efforts to root out corrupt activities within cricket."

Westfield pleaded guilty at a court hearing to his part in the corruption and was also handed a ban from all cricket by the ECB.

He was jailed for four months.

Kaneria, who played 61 Tests and 18 One-Day Internationals for his country, was also given a life ban by the Pakistan Cricket Board in 2013.

© Cricket World 2014