Kaneria loses final legal challenge against life ban

Former Pakistan international Danish Kaneria has lost his final legal challenge in an English court against a life ban imposed by the England and Wales Cricket Board for spot-fixing while playing for county side Essex, it was announced today.
Judge Stanley Burton, sitting in England's Court of Appeal, said an application by Kaneria to appeal against a life ban imposed by the ECB in June 2012, was "totally without merit".
Burton also decided Kaneria could not request the decision to be reconsidered at an oral hearing.
His rulings meant Kaneria had exhausted all the legal options available to him in England to appeal a life ban which, under reciprocal arrangements between all members of the International Cricket Council, means the 33-year-old leg-spinner is barred from playing cricket worldwide.

ECB chairman Giles Clarke, responding to the Court of Appeal's announcement, said in a statement: "ECB welcomes today's decision to dismiss the application by Mr Kaneria to appeal the life ban imposed for his corrupt activity.
"Mr Kaneria acted as a recruiter of potential 'spot-fixers' and used his seniority and international experience to target and corrupt a young and vulnerable player."
Clarke added: "It is high time that Mr Kaneria came clean about his involvement in these corrupt activities and stopped misleading the Pakistan cricket fans and wider public with his empty protestations of innocence.