Umpire asked for $500,000 to resign

ENGLAND’S one-day series with Pakistan was saved yesterday after the stunning revelations umpire Darrell Hair asked for $500,000 (€392,000) to quit his position in the aftermath of the forfeited fourth Test.

The International Cricket Council’s executive board will now meet on September 2 to discuss Hair’s astonishing demands to step down from his elite-list contract in an e-mail to ICC manager of referees and umpires Doug Cowie.

The chain of events has now delayed indefinitely Pakistan captain Inzamam ul-Haq’s disciplinary hearing to face charges of ball-tampering and bringing the game into disrepute.