NEW DELHI — India is mulling a law to deal with the issue of spot-fixing in sport following last week's arrest of cricketers and bookmakers, government officials said Monday. Former India Test bowler S. Sreesanth and two other players were arrested along with 11 bookmakers Thursday on suspicion of spot-fixing in the country's ongoing Twenty20 league. The cricket board immediately suspended the trio, who have been accused of taking money to concede a certain number of runs in a particular over. Law Minister Kapil Sibal has consulted Sports Minister Jitendra Singh and the new bill will likely be introduced in the next session of the Indian parliament. “We have been looking at different ways to control and regulate that part of illegal betting,” sports secretary P.K. Deb said. “We have been studying how they deal with it in the UK and Australia and the information we have gathered will be shared with the Law Ministry. We are still some distance away from it (the law).” Legal sports betting in India is confined to horse racing while illegal betting syndicates thrive in the absence of a law dealing specifically with such corruption in sport. Media estimates put the amount gambled on India's top cricket Twenty20 competition at $427 million in 2009. “We need to have a separate law,” Law Minister Sibal told reporters Sunday. “I don't think the Indian Penal Code has matchfixing and spot-fixing as an offense and I don't think the ‘offense of cheating' is something that adequately deals with issues of spot-fixing and matchfixing,” the law minister told reporters. “I have requested my ministry to work on such a law ... Once the broad parameters of the law are made out, I'll hand it over to the sports ministry to take it to the cabinet and hopefully introduce it in the coming session of the parliament.” Spot-fixing is manipulation of individual incidents within a match which may not affect the outcome of the contest, most famously exposed in a London trial and jailing of three Pakistan cricketers in 2011. Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt and teammates Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were jailed in Britain for their role in a spot-fixing scandal relating to a Test match against England at Lord's in August 2010. The International Cricket Council subsequently banned the three players for a minimum of five years. Vettori joins NZ squad early after Martin ruled out Former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori could play his first Test for 10 months after spinner Bruce Martin was ruled out of the rest of the tour of England with a calf injury. “Bruce Martin out of England tour, Dan Vettori to join squad early, BJ Watling making good progress,” New Zealand Cricket tweeted Monday. Wicketkeeper Watling hurt his knee Saturday diving to make a run-out and captain Brendon McCullum took over the gloves for the rest of the first Lord's Test which New Zealand lost by 170 runs. Vettori, who has been struggling with a long-term Achilles injury, was originally included in New Zealand's one-day squad that will also contest the Champions Trophy in June but not the test side. The second and final Test starts at Headingley in Leeds Friday. “Daniel's come over 24 hours earlier for us to have a chance to have a look at him,” New Zealand coach Mike Hesson was quoted as saying by the BBC. “We won't risk Dan for the sake of a Test but, in saying that, it is an important Test match for us. “We won't be pushing Dan if he's not ready but if he is we'd certainly love to have him.” The 34-year-old all-rounder's last Test was against the West Indies in Antigua last July. He did play in the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka last year. Left-armer Vettori is New Zealand's second highest Test wicket-taker with 360 behind Richard Hadlee (431). — Agencies
