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IPL council suspends five players

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	Shalabh Srivastava is one of five players who have been suspended from cricket pending the BCCI inquiry © Associated Press  Enlarge

The IPL governing council has suspended five players named by a sting operation alleging corruption until an inquiry into the accusations is conducted. TP Sudhindra (Deccan Chargers), Mohnish Mishra (Pune Warriors), Shalabh Srivastava (Kings XI Punjab), Amit Yadav (Kings XI Punjab) and Abhinav Bali were suspended, according to IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla.

"The above players would not be entitled to participate in any cricket match played under the aegis of the BCCI while under suspension," N Srinivasan, the BCCI president, said in a statement.

Shukla said Ravi Sawani, the former head of the ICC's anti-corruption and security unit (ACSU), will conduct the inquiry. "The conversation [in the sting] is about other matches also, which are not IPL, or in previous IPLs," Shukla said after the meeting on Tuesday. "After due consideration, the BCCI president has decided to have an inquiry for which a commissioner has been appointed, Mr Ravi Sawani. He will be conducting the preliminary inquiry. His report will be sent to the disciplinary committee."

Srivastava, one of the players accused by the sting, said he was not guilty. "I fail to understand whatever is being said about spot-fixing. Also if they [a TV channel) are showing all the video clips, why aren't they showing the clip where I allegedly am demanding Rs. 10 lakh?" he told NDTV. "The voice in that telephonic conversation is not mine. It is very easy to frame anyone with a doctored audio clip."

India TV, a television channel, showed footage of a player bowling a big no-ball in a limited-overs match and played a recording of a phone conversation that it said was of a current IPL player negotiating a fee for bowling a no-ball. It also had at least three players on camera allegedly seeking more lucrative deals - including extra money that would have violated their IPL contracts - with other league franchises through an undercover reporter posing as a sports agent.

Srivastava has not played a match for Kings XI this IPL season, though he was a fairly regular starter in 2011 and has played 14 matches in all. Mohnish Mishra played the solitary match for Warriors in 2012, when he replaced Sourav Ganguly against Royal Challengers Bangalore and was dismissed for 4. Sudhindra played three games for Chargers, conceding 136 runs and taking only one wicket, while Yadav has not got a game for Kings XI. Bali, an allrounder from Delhi, is not part of the IPL but has played first-class and limited-overs cricket for Himachal Pradesh.