PCB takes ICC's road

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has introduced a revised code of conduct for its players in line with recommendations made by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for stricter implementation of anti-corruption laws.
Pakistan's squad must sign the new code before leaving for a Twenty20, one-day and Test series against South Africa in the United Arab Emirates later this month, manager Intikhab Alam told Reuters on Monday.
"The new code has been prepared keeping in mind recommendations made by the ICC. There is a lot more stress on creating awareness among players about anti-corruption laws and regulations," Alam said, adding that the new guidelines also encompassed domestic cricket in Pakistan.
"We don't want a repeat of what happened in England. I myself have given a detailed briefing to the players about the code of conduct," he said.
Three Pakistan players -- Test captain Salman Butt and pace duo Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif -- have been suspended by the ICC while an investigation takes place into newspaper allegations that they had deliberately arranged for no-balls to be delivered during the fourth Test against England at Lord's in August.
The trio, who have all denied wrongdoing, will attend an appeal hearing in Doha on October 30 and 31.
Alam said that he had been given increased authority by the PCB to deal with indiscipline and misconduct.
"The board has made it clear in the new code that the manager will waste no time in stamping out indiscipline in the team," he added.
Pakistan will play two T20 matches, five one-dayers and two Tests against South Africa from October 26 as a 'home' series hosted by the United Arab Emirates.
CricInfo adds: the PCB was compelled to act quickly after the prospect of expelling its chairman Ijaz Butt as an ICC director was raised at the ICC board meeting in Dubai last week, underlining just how thin the ice is that the Pakistan board is currently skating on.
Well-placed observers vary on the degree of the threat but some believe Butt was compelled to accept a series of wide-ranging measures to reform Pakistan cricket without protest because the alternative would have been to face expulsion.
The focus of the two-day board meeting was on anti-corruption and, in particular, concerns over the health of the game in Pakistan. Specifically three broad areas were up for discussion, including an update on the spot-fixing investigations, how the game tackles corruption globally and how Pakistan is to be helped.
At its conclusion, the ICC set an ultimatum to the PCB to implement a series of effective anti-corruption measures in its domestic set-up within 30 days [from October 13].
The remit of the ICC's task force on Pakistan has also been broadened to look at ways of improving the structure of governance in Pakistan, "to carry out any reforms," according to the ICC, "which may be deemed necessary to restore confidence in the administration of the game."
It is understood that the actions of the Pakistan board through the year brought matters to a head.
The revoking of punishments handed out after the Australia tour inquiry, in which the PCB found players guilty of deliberately underperforming, worried member boards.
The handling of the spot-fixing crisis -- in particular its refusal to suspend players -- and a spate of statements made in the aftermath by Butt and others have exacerbated matters.
The feeling in the cricket world before this meeting, one source said, was that "Pakistan cricket was in denial.”