Gibbs, Boje pull out of Indian tour

JOHANESBURGH—Herschelle Gibbs and Nicky Boje, the two South African cricketers who the Delhi Police want to question in their alleged involvement in the matchfixing scandal, have pulled out of South Africa’s forthcoming tour to India in November. Both players had pulled out of the last year’s Test tour to India after the Delhi Police, which was responsible for cracking the case in 2000, did not give an assurance they would not be questioned or arrested. Although both denied that they accepted money to underperform in ODIs on South Africa’s tour of India in 2000-01, they are still listed as “wanted” on the Delhi Police’s books. Gerald Majola, the chief executive of the United Cricket Board of South Africa said that they hadn’t been given an assurance regarding the safety of Gibbs and Boje despite repeated efforts. “The whole matter is beginning to develop into a circus,” Majola told Rapport, an Afrikaans weekly. He added that though Jagmohan Dalmiya, the former president of the Indian board, had assured him that nothing would happen to Gibbs and Boje if they toured India, “but up to now we have not been able to get the same assurance from the Indian police”.—Agencies