Ex-umpire says he was approached

 Former umpire John Holder alleged on Sunday he was offered 10,000 pounds ($15,139) to help sway the course of an one-day international in the United Arab Emirates.

Holder, who stood in 11 Tests, said the approach related to a match between Sri Lanka and Pakistan in Sharjah in 1993. “They said if I can somehow lull the Sri Lanka batsmen into putting on a partnership of 85 they would give me 10,000 pounds in cash,” the 68-year-old Holder told BBC Radio’s Test Match Special. “I said, ‘You’ve got the wrong person’.”

Barbados-born Holder, a former bowler for English county Hampshire, became a first-class umpire in 1983 and stood in 11 Tests and 19 ODIs from 1988 to 2001.

Amid recent corruption charges relating to the Indian Premier League, Holder said he declined the offer because it could ruin his career.

“Once you get into that (match-fixing), your career is ruined. You’d lose your self-respect, the players and commentators would know.

“I couldn’t live my life looking over my shoulder, and I’d always be remembered as a cheat, so I had to say no, and reported it.”