Islamabad: After making a controversial statement that a close eye is being kept on the Pakistan team before their high-octane World Cup semifinal game against India, Pakistan interior minister Rahman Malik has now backtracked from his earlier statement.
Earlier in the day, Malik had warned the Pakistani cricketers to not indulge in any match-fixing before their high-intensity game on Wednesday.
The minister also mentioned that he was keeping a "close watch" on their activities.
"I gave a warning that there should be no match-fixing. I am keeping a close watch. If any such thing happens, we are going to take action," Malik had said two days ahead of the game in Mohali which will showcase one of the world's most intense sporting rivalries.
Malik said that though he was "sure the team has very clean members", intelligence is being gathered on the Pakistani cricketers, including "who are meeting them and the position of their telephones".
"This is necessary because we can't take a chance after what happened in London," he had said, in a reference to a recent match-fixing controversy in Britain involving three Pakistani players.
Malik, who made the remarks during an interaction with the media in the port city of Karachi, also had some advice for the Pakistani players.
"Do your practise, sleep early at night and wake at the proper time. They should dedicate themselves to Pakistan for the match," he had said.
There is a lot of excitement about the India-Pakistan clash in the World Cup semi-final, he said.
"There is a lot of love for the cricketers and we hope they will win the game for us. We expect they will not disappoint the people," the minister had said.
Malik also welcomed his Indian counterpart P Chidambaram's remarks about adequate security being provided to the Pakistani team while in India in light of possible threats to the players.
He noted that Chidambaram had said special arrangements would be made for the game in Mohali, including the deploying of some 1,000 commandoes, "I am sure of his (Chidambaram s) capability. He is a man of wisdom and authority and has the capability to handle things well," Malik said.
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