Former captain Salman Butt has called for an open trial against him in Pakistan saying he didn&rsquo;t get justice in a cricket corruption case which led to a lengthy ban and jail time. <img alt="" src="/imagedata/2012/jun/Salman-Butt_1.jpg" style="width: 500px; height: 492px; " /> Salman Butt during a press conference in Lahore yesterday. PIC/AFP The 27-year-old was found guilty by both the game&rsquo;s governing body and a British court of orchestrating deliberate no-balls through two of his bowlers during the 2010 Lord&rsquo;s Test against England, in return for money. The deal was organised between Butt&rsquo;s agent Mazhar Majeed and an undercover reporter for the now defunct News of the World, in a sting operation which exposed corruption in international cricket. All three players were banned for a minimum of five years by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and were subsequently convicted and jailed by a British court for corruption. Butt, who was the last of the three released from prison last week after serving less than a quarter of his 30 month sentence, protested his innocence. &ldquo;If you look at the evidence you can judge that I didn&rsquo;t get justice,&rdquo; Butt said in his first television interview since the affair, which aired on private channel Express News on Thursday night. &ldquo;I had to make a sacrifice because I didn&rsquo;t take anyone&rsquo;s name, it didn&rsquo;t suit me. It&rsquo;s not about me or anyone else, it&rsquo;s about Pakistan. I would like Pakistani courts, the Supreme Court, to hold an open trial and I am sure they will clear me. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t accept anything against me. If you look at the evidence against me, I had no links to spot-fixing. Who did and who planned it (I don&rsquo;t know), but certainly I didn&rsquo;t do that. I played for my country and respected that (honour).&rdquo; When asked about the discovery in his hotel room of notes marked by the News of the World, Butt replied: &ldquo;Yes there were 4,500 pounds and that was my money. I had to inaugurate an ice cream parlour and got 2,500 pounds (from Majeed) in advance. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t know that he had paid me notes which were marked. That was my money and that&rsquo;s why I got them back (when I was released) and I have receipt of all that.&rdquo; Butt said the welcome he received in Lahore suggested people still loved him. &ldquo;It was an unexpected welcome. People showed they still love me,&rdquo; said Butt of the welcome in Lahore last week. Play for Pak again? He also vowed to represent Pakistan again. &ldquo;I will do my best to become a good human being and represent Pakistan again. It seems a long shot but I will do my best,&rdquo; said Butt, who apologised for his actions on arrival last week. Butt later told a press conference he will challenge the ICC ban, ten years in all with five suspended years, in the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) based in Switzerland. &ldquo;I have written to the CAS to take up my appeal but the cost of this whole process is very expensive and I cannot afford that and need support,&rdquo; said Butt. &ldquo;The ICC banned me before the forensic evidence came,&rdquo; said Butt of the mobile phone data of his conversation and SMS with Majeed to strike the deal. &ldquo;The evidence came after ten months but the ICC banned me before that.&rdquo; u00a0

Salman Butt calls for an open trial in Pakistan, saying he was denied justice in spot-fixing issue

I am innocent, says Salman Butt

Trending Stories

Latest Photos

Latest Videos

Latest Web Stories

Mid-Day Fast

Home / Sports / Cricket / Article / I am innocent, says Salman Butt

I am innocent, says Salman Butt

Trending Stories

Latest Photos

Latest Videos

Latest Web Stories

Mid-Day Fast