Ex-ICC chief Morgan says Srinivasan's decision to step aside as BCCI chief correct

Former International Cricket Council (ICC) president Dennis Morgan has said that N.Srinivasan did the right thing by stepping aside as the president of the Board of Control fro Cricket in India (BCCI)in the wake of the spot-fixing scandal that had hit the game and led to the arrest of his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan last month.

Morgan said: "I believe that Mr. Srinivasan in standing aside has probably done the right thing. And quite clearly, there are many talented administrators within the BCCI who can help. I understand Mr. Dalmiya is going to do that currently. But there is Mr. Bindra, Mr. Manohar and Mr. Pawar, all people who have held office recently, who are very talented and very capable."

BCCI secretary Sanjay Jagdale and treasurer Ajay Shirke and IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla had quit in the wake of the spot-fixing scandal in the Twenty20 cricket league. Their departure had mounted pressure on Srinivasan to put in his papers.

Ever since, Gurunath Meiyappan had been nabbed, there were clamours in the local media of politicians and cricket fans demanding the resignation of BCCI chief, N Srinivasan.

Cricket, the "gentleman's game" of the British Empire nations, has been hit by a series of gambling-related scandals in international matches in recent years and several players have been convicted of throwing games.

When asked about the possibilities of betting in cricket in the international arena, Morgan said that the ICC is doing well to combat it.

"I believe that the ICC does a tremendous job in doing a ...(sic) to eradicate match fixing and spot fixing," he said.

Legal sports betting in India is confined to horse racing, while illegal gambling syndicates thrive in the absence of a law dealing specifically with such corruption in sport.

Media estimates put the amount gambled on India's top Twenty20 competition at 427 million dollars in 2009.