Sports
Battle with bookies in Colomboextends to immorality
West Indiesstar batsman Brian Lara Hits a ball to the boundary for four asKenya wicket keeper David Obuya looks on during the ICC ChampionsTrophy match between West Indies and Kenya at Sinhaless SportsClub ground ( SSC ) in Colombo 17 September 2002. AFP PHOTO/ SenaVIDANAGAMA.
By Amal Jayasinghe
COLOMBO, (AFP) - Elite police units deployedto guard the teams taking part in the ongoing Champions Trophytournament here have come up with an unexpected foe -- prostitutes-- in addition to crooked players and bookies.
Police said on Sunday, 22 September thatthey were battling to keep women away from the rooms of cricketplayers from the 10 Test playing nations as well as Holland andKenya, but some of the cricketers were getting wise to policetactics.
The police lodged a formal complaint withthe International Cricket Council (ICC) last week after threewomen were found in the rooms of West Indies manager Ricky Skerrittand West Indies computer operator, Garfield Smith.
"We are not making a moral judgementbut are simply trying to enforce the 'access control' guidelinesissued to us by the cricket authorities," a top police officialsaid.
He said one of the women found in the companyof the West Indian players was a daughter of a former Sri Lankapolice chief. Another girl was a 17-year-old student.
Police said the women had been in the roomsof the two West Indians with their consent, but the authoritieshave begun investigating if the three women had criminal recordsor were linked to bookies.
Police said some of the players were leavingtheir hotel to sidestep the tight security at the deluxe Taj Samudrawhere plain-clothed policemen have been deployed to check on thosemeeting the cricketers.
The ICC sought police protection for theChampions Trophy tournament which started on September 12 andis due to continue till the end of the month not so much to protectplayers, but to make sure they don't get up to dirty tricks.
The Sunday Leader newspaper said playerswere seen trying to pick up women at the Taj Samudra and eventwo women reporters had been propositioned by unnamed playersin the hotel lobby.
More than 300 plain-clothed police are beingdeployed for the largely covert operations during the tournament,officials said. This is in addition to uniformed police for usualcrowd control at match venues in the capital.
Banning mobile phones for cricketers atthe match venues and at the team hotel has become standard practice,but the surveillance was extended to the players' car park, thegrandstand and even during practice at nets.
But the players were getting wise to thepolice tactics and some were slipping out of the team hotel, policesaid.
Police had deployed an elaborate screeningoperation before the tournament got underway with hotel staffchecked to establish if they had any links with bookies.
In previous years when games were hostedamid the threat of Tamil Tiger suicide bombings, the players wereaccorded security that is generally reserved for visiting headsof state.
However, this time the focus is on keepingthe players under check as fears of bombings receded with thegovernment and Tamil Tiger rebels entering into a ceasefire sinceFebruary.
"Gambling on cricket has got so muchout of hand that bookies take bets on how many players wear acertain type of sunglasses at the opening of a game," a policeofficer said at the start of the tournament.
The Pakistan-Sri Lanka match which was wonby the host team by eight wickets was under review by the ICCto establish if there was any fixing, but later the Pakistaniswere cleared of wrongdoing.
Two Sri Lankan players, former skipper ArjunaRanatunga and his deputy Aravinda de Silva have been accused --and cleared -- of match-fixing charges by a probe team which cited"inadequate and untested" evidence against them.
The allegations against the two Sri Lankanplayers were contained in a report by India's Central Bureau ofInvestigation (CBI) which had looked into charges against playersin that country last year.