KPL: Shivamogga Lions' Nishant Shekhawat arrested in fixing scandal

The Bengaluru police have reportedly arrested cricketer Nishant Shekhawat on Tuesday in connection with the alleged match-fixing case in the Karnataka Premier League (KPL) 2018. Shekhawat who has played multiple editions of the KPL. The Shivamogga Lion’s batsman has been arrested on the charges of reaching out to bookies and players during the 2018 Karnataka Premier League. He’s the second cricketer to be arrested by the police after M Vishwanathan was arrested on October 25.

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KPL Fixing scandal: Nishant Shekhawat arrested

“Cricket player Nishant Singh Shekhawat has been arrested. He was in touch with the bookies and had contacted Bangalore Blasters team bowling Coach Vinu Prasad to fix players,” Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Sandeep Patil told ANI on Tuesday. It is alleged that in the game between Bengaluru and Belgavi, Nishant Shekhawat received ₹5 Lakhs to play slow. He is accused of helping Vinu Prasad lure M Vishwanathan into alleged fixing in the 18th game of the 2018 KPL on behalf of Chandigarh based bookie Manoj Kumar alias Monty.

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Vishwanathan allegedly received ₹5 Lakh for slow batting in the game against Mysuru. He sent out signals of his agreement to score less than 1 runs in 20 balls by changing his bat and rolling up his sleeve. He scored 9 off 17 balls in the game against Hubbali Tigers.

The police had earlier arrested Belgavi Panthers’ team owner Ali Asfak Thara, celebrity drummer Bhavesh Bafna since September. The Crime Branch has also named two Delhi bookies Sanyam Gulati and Jatin Sethi for alleged involvement in the KPL fixing racket. The police have also questioned Arvind Venkatesh Reddy, owner of the Ballari Tuskers in KPL.

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KPL, TNPL under the scanner

The Karnataka Premier League is a T20 Cricket league formed in 2009, modelled on the Indian Premier League (IPL). Organised by the Karnataka State Cricket Association, The KPL was inactive for 3 years before making a comeback in 2014. The crackdown on betting and match-fixing in the competition comes after the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TPL) came under the scanner of the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) and the Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI).

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