2011 World Cup format vulnerable to fixing, says Latif

Pakistan's whistleblower on match-fixing, Rashid Latif, has said that inconsequential matches in the league stage of the ongoing World Cup gave scope to spot-fixing

Pakistan's whistleblower on match-fixing, Rashid Latif, has said that inconsequential matches in the league stage of the ongoing World Cup gave scope to spot-fixing.

Rashid Latif

"It is obvious that the real competition will only start from the quarter-final stage. This means bookmakers can try and corrupt players to indulge in white collar spot-fixing crime in the group matches," Latif was quoted as saying by PTI.

Weakness

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Pointing out the inherent weakness in the 2011 tournament format, Latif said: "What sort of format or formation have they applied in such a big event? ufffd The formation is such that even if a top team loses a match or two, this really will not stop it from qualifying for the quarter-finals."

"My fear is this format ufffd only encourages spot-fixing, (which) is difficult for anyone to identify," added Latif who played in 37 tests and 169 ODIs.