'Threatened' Pakistan keeper flees to spark new match-fixing riddle

The extraordinary saga of scandal and corruption surrounding Pakistan cricket took yet another twist yesterday when Zulqarnain Haider, the team's wicketkeeper, fled to London just hours before he was due to play a one-day international against South Africa in Dubai. Before fleeing he posted a cryptic message on his Facebook page suggesting he had been threatened, with the message implying the threat had arisen from his failure to fix a match.

Pakistan cricket authorities were left baffled by Haider's disappearance and reported him missing to local police and the anti-corruption unit of the ICC.

The player subsequently arrived in London; he was filmed at Heathrow airport as South Africa sealed the one-day series against Pakistan 3-2 with a 57-run win in Dubai. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said Zulqarnain had not told them he was going to leave the team hotel, let alone why he should make such a dramatic departure.