Corruption in cricket: Al Jazeera blasts ‘Anglo-Saxon’ bias and hints of BBC cover-up over match-fixing investigation

Qatar-based media group Al Jazeera has defiantly defended its documentary about cricket match-fixing, suggesting authorities’ have a racial bias towards “Anglo-Saxon” countries and hinting that British broadcaster BBC was involved in a cover-up after a similar investigation by its Panorama team.

This month, Al Jazeera broadcast the second and final part of its documentary into cricket match-fixing, with the focus on an alleged match-fixer who goes by the name of Aneel Munawar.

The programme claims that Munawar is part of a powerful India-based criminal gang known as D-Company and that he was able to exactly predict 25 out of 26 outcomes in 15 supposedly fixed cricket matches.

These matches involved England, Australia and Pakistan, with Al Jazeera hitting out at the International Cricket Council (ICC) for its inability to investigate these allegations.

A source who has knowledge of a deep undercover operation to expose match-fixing at the highest level, but wishes to remain anonymous because of the sensitive nature of the investigation, says this independent probe is also looking into the BBC claims.