Mazhar Majeed

Last updated

Mazhar Majeed (born 1975) is a British sporting agent and runs a Talent Management Agency, Star People [1] which is in the business of managing brands, film and TV personalities and sporting athletes. In 2022, Mazhar Majeed became the manager for two time World Boxing Champion, Amir Iqbal Khan. [2] He additionally organized the fight between Amir Khan and Kell Brook on February 18, 2022. [3] Earlier, he came under police investigation in 2010 following reports of cricket 'match fixing' after a News of the World sting operation. [4] On Saturday 28 August 2010, he was arrested by Scotland Yard for allegedly fixing a Test match between England and Pakistan in Lord's. On 3 November 2011, Majeed was given a prison sentence of 32 months on convictions of "conspiracy to make corrupt payments" and "conspiracy to allow others to cheat at gambling," to run concurrently. [5]

Contents

Background

Born 1975 in Croydon, England, Majeed attended the Coulsdon High School and studied business at Middlesex University in north London before forming a property development company based in London and Surrey, Majeed was a major shareholder and co-owner of Croydon Athletic F.C. [6] His family migrated to England from Faisalabad, Pakistan. [7] Majeed is married to an Indian wife [8] and is the father of four children. [9]

Affiliation with Pakistani cricketers

Majeed, along with his brother Azhar, was known to the Pakistani players as a sports agent who had worked to secure the Pakistani players lucrative equipment sponsorship deals while the players were playing in the United Kingdom [10] Between 2008 and 2009, the Pakpassion cricket website also had a regular section called "The Agents Views", in which Azhar would update readers on the activities of a number of players. Despite his close relationship to the players, dating back to Pakistan's previous tour of England, the Pakistani players were warned by the Pakistan coaching staff not to associate with Majeed or his brother, and did not want the players to have agents in their rooms. [11]

Spot-fixing bribe and arrest

On 28 August 2010, The English tabloid News of the World published a story with additional video of their undercover reporters offering Majeed £150,000 ($232,665) for information on the ongoing 4th Test Match between England and Pakistan. In the video published by News of the World, Majeed told the undercover reporters that two Pakistani bowlers (Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir) would deliberately deliver no-balls at specific points during the match. Majeed stated on the video that Amir would be Pakistan's bowler for the third over, and that the first ball of the over would be a no-ball delivery. Amir did bowl the third over, and on his first delivery from the over, bowled a no-ball delivery. Commentary described the delivery as a "massive overstep", a good half-foot beyond the delivery line. [12] Majeed also predicted that the sixth delivery of the tenth over would be a no-ball, and the ball, delivered by Asif, was also a no-ball delivery.

During the video, Majeed boasted of working with seven of Pakistan's touring squad. Of those seven, on the video he named Amir, Asif, team captain Salman Butt and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal as those working with him. The other three were not named on the video.

As a result of the allegations, Majeed was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud bookmakers charges. The next day, Pakistan completed their loss against England by an innings and 225 runs, and Pakistan lost the four match series 3–1.

Allegations of match fixing

On the same video posted by the News of the World, Majeed said that earlier in the year the second Test match between Pakistan and Australia in Sydney had also been fixed. He stated that players had deliberately lost the game after being in a commanding position (Australia were only up 10 runs with two second innings wickets left, and Pakistan had yet to bat). Majeed has now stated that the odds against an Australian victory had gone as high as 40–1, and that the fixers had made over a million pounds from the resulting wagers. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shoaib Akhtar</span> Pakistani former cricketer (born 1975)

Shoaib Akhtar is a Pakistani former cricketer and commentator. Nicknamed the "Rawalpindi Express", he is the fastest bowler to have played the game. Akhtar made his Test match debut in November 1997 as an opening fast bowler and played his first One Day International three months later. He has been involved in several controversies during his career, often accused of unsportsmanlike conduct. Akhtar was sent home during a Test match series in Australia in 2005 for alleged poor attitude and a year later received a ban after testing positive for the performance-enhancing substance nandrolone. However, the ban imposed on him was lifted on appeal. In 2008, Akhtar was banned for five years for publicly criticising the Pakistan Cricket Board, although in October 2008, the Lahore High Court suspended the ban and Akhtar was selected in the 15-man squad for the Twenty20 Quadrangular Tournament in Canada. Akhtar retired from international cricket after the 2011 World Cup. Post-retirement, he began a YouTube career by starting his own channel, where he gives reviews on International and league matches and Pakistan cricket.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pakistan national cricket team</span> National sports team

The Pakistan national cricket team has represented Pakistan in international cricket since 1952. It is controlled by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the governing body for cricket in Pakistan, which is a Full Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC). Pakistan compete in cricket tours and tournaments sanctioned by the PCB and other regional or international cricket bodies in Test, One Day International (ODI), and Twenty20 International (T20) formats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waqar Younis</span> Pakistani cricketer

Waqar Younis Maitla HI is a Pakistani cricket coach, commentator and former cricketer who captained Pakistan national cricket team. A right-arm fast bowler, he is regarded as one of the greatest bowlers in cricket. He is the former head coach of the Pakistani cricket team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Croydon Athletic F.C.</span> Football club

Croydon Athletic Football Club was an English football club based in Thornton Heath in the London Borough of Croydon, London, England. It was founded in 1986 and initially named as Wandsworth & Norwood until 1990. The club progressed through various leagues, eventually winning the Isthmian League Division Three in 2001-02 and Division One South in 2009-10. In 2008, property developer Mazhar Majeed bought the club. However, in 2010, allegations of Majeed's involvement in spot-fixing and money-laundering led to turmoil within the club, including management resignations, player departures, and the chairman's suicide. By 2011, the club was effectively defunct. Fans formed AFC Croydon Athletic, which joined the Combined Counties Football League. Croydon Athletic played at the Keith Tuckey Stadium in Thornton Heath.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mohammad Asif (cricketer)</span> Pakistani former cricketer

Mohammad Asif is a Pakistani former cricketer who played for the Pakistani national cricket team between 2005 and 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salman Butt</span> Pakistani cricketer

Salman Butt is a former Pakistani cricketer and captain who played for Pakistan national cricket team between 2003 and 2010, before getting banned for five years for his involvement in 2010 spot-fixing scandal. Butt was a member of the Pakistan team that won the 2009 ICC World Twenty20.

Mohammed Ijaz Butt was a Pakistani cricketer who played in eight Test matches from 1959 to 1962. A wicket keeper and right-handed opening batsman, he scored 279 runs from his brief Test career at a modest batting average of 19.92, however he was a capable wicket keeper with a first-class cricket career for Lahore, Multan, Punjab and Rawalpindi where he scored 3,842 runs at 34.30 with a best of 161.

Cricket has had a number of controversies relating to players being involved with the betting aspects of the game. In particular, numerous players have been approached by bookmakers and bribed to throw matches, aspects of matches or provide other information.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saeed Ajmal</span> Pakistani cricketer

Saeed Ajmal SI is a Pakistani cricket coach and former cricketer, who played all forms of the game. He is a right-arm off-spin bowler who bats right handed. At domestic level in Pakistan he represented Faisalabad, with whom he won the 2005 ABN-AMRO Twenty-20 Cup; Khan Research Laboratories; and Islamabad. Ajmal made his One Day International debut for Pakistan in July 2008 at the age of 30, and a year later played his first Test. In 2009, he was reported for having a suspect bowling action, but after being cleared he helped Pakistan win the 2009 ICC World Twenty20. Ajmal played for Worcestershire as an overseas player in English domestic cricket in 2011. From November 2011 to December 2014, Ajmal was ranked by the International Cricket Council as the number one bowler in ODIs. He reached the same ranking in T20Is between October and December 2012, while his highest Test ranking was second between January and July of the same year. He is one of four Test bowlers that made their debut after the age of thirty to take more than 100 test wickets, along with Clarrie Grimmett, Dilip Doshi and Ryan Harris.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mohammad Amir</span> Pakistani cricketer

Mohammad Amir is a former Pakistani cricketer and bowler for the Pakistan national cricket team. He was a left-arm fast bowler and a left handed batsman. He retired from international cricket in 2020 aged 28.

The Pakistan cricket team toured Australia for a 3-match Test series, a 5-match ODI series, and 1 Twenty20 International from 19 December 2009 to 5 February 2010.

The Pakistan cricket team toured England from 29 July to 22 September 2010. The tour consisted of four Tests, two Twenty20s (T20) and five One Day Internationals (ODIs). The first Test of the series, at Trent Bridge, was the 900th Test match to be played by England.

Spot-fixing is illegal activity in a sport in which a specific aspect of a game, unrelated to the final result but upon which a betting market exists, is fixed in an attempt to ensure a certain result in a proposition bet. Examples include something as minor as timing a no ball or wide delivery in cricket or timing the first throw-in or corner in association football.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pakistan cricket spot-fixing scandal</span> Pakistan cricket scandal

The Pakistan cricket spot-fixing scandal was a sports scandal that occurred during a Test match between England and Pakistan at Lord's, London, in August 2010. The scandal centered on three members of Pakistan's national cricket team, who were convicted of taking bribes from a bookmaker, Mazhar Majeed, to deliberately bowl no-balls at certain pre-arranged moments during the Test.

Mohammad Junaid Khan is a Pakistani international cricketer who bowls left arm fast. He is the first player from Swabi to qualify for the Pakistan national cricket team. His cousin, the leg-spinner Yasir Shah, followed his path later. Junaid Khan was a member of the Pakistan team that won the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy.

Mohammad Bilal Asif is a Pakistani cricketer who represents the national team as well a singer-songwriter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hasan Ali (cricketer)</span> Pakistani cricketer

Hasan Ali is a Pakistani cricketer who plays for the national team in all formats. He made his first-class debut for Sialkot in October 2013. He made his international debut for Pakistan in August 2016 in a One Day International (ODI) match. The following summer, he was named in Pakistan's squad for the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy. Pakistan went on to win the tournament with Ali named player of the tournament after taking thirteen wickets, and took the final wicket of Jasprit Bumrah. He became the quickest bowler for Pakistan to take 50 wickets in ODIs. In August 2018, he was one of thirty-three players to be awarded a central contract for the 2018–19 season by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

Faheem Ashraf is a Pakistani international cricketer who represents the national side and plays first-class cricket for Habib Bank Limited. In August 2018, he was one of thirty-three players to be awarded a central contract for the 2018–19 season by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). Ashraf is the first Pakistani to take a hat-trick in the T20 format of the game.

Mohammad Hasnain is a Pakistani cricketer who has played for the Pakistan cricket team since 2019. He is one of the fastest bowlers currently, timed at over 150kmh.

The Pakistan cricket team toured England in August and September 2020 to play three Tests and three Twenty20 International (T20I) matches. The Test series formed part of the inaugural 2019–2021 ICC World Test Championship. The first Test and the T20I matches were played at Old Trafford, and the second and third Test matches were played at the Rose Bowl. All of the fixtures were played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

  1. ↑ "Star People - Management Specialists". www.star-people.co.uk. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  2. ↑ Web Desk (21 February 2022). "Amir Khan: Infamous bookie Mazhar Majeed is boxer's manager now". News 360. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  3. ↑ "Seventeen years in the making - how Khan v Brook was finally sorted". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  4. ↑ "Sydney Test 'was rigged'". Herald Sun . Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  5. ↑ "Salman Butt and Pakistan bowlers jailed for betting scam". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. 3 November 2011. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
  6. ↑ "New Rams owner promises investment (From Your Local Guardian)". Yourlocalguardian.co.uk. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  7. ↑ Archived 4 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ↑ "Match-fixing scandal & RAW connection". Pakobserver.net. 3 September 2010. Archived from the original on 13 February 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  9. ↑ "Spot-fixing controversy: 'I blame myself for bringing Mazhar to cricket' | Cricket". ESPN Cricinfo. 3 November 2011. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  10. ↑ "Mazhar Majeed known to Pakistan players". Cricinfo. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
  11. ↑ Samiuddin, Osman. "Players were told not to meet Majeed brothers". Cricinfo. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
  12. ↑ "Lord's Test at centre of fixing allegations". cricinfo.com. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
  13. ↑ "Scandal casts doubt on Sydney Test win". abc.net.au. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.