In his first public appearance since fleeing Dubai midway through a tour and surfacing in London, Zulqarnain Haider reiterated to reporters at an impromptu press conference at Chaudhry's TKC Restaurant in Southall that he fled because of death threats against him and his family, and said the best way for the ICC to eradicate match fixing is to "record all the players' phones and record where they are going."
"It was very hard for me when I got threats from one person in Dubai," he said. "I just felt very nervous that he gave me threats." Haider chose the venue because it had provided catering to the Pakistan team during its tour of England earlier this year.
Haider said "a lot of people are involved" in match-fixing and that he would co-operate fully with the ICC's Anti-Corruption and Security Unit as he wants cricket to be "clear of fixing", but did not accuse any of the players in the Pakistan team, saying he didn't want to blame or be negative towards anyone. The ACSU has already communicated with Haider over his claims.
The 24-year-old chose to flee to England because "this country is very humane, very co-operative, and there are very nice people here and there are very good rules here for my safety." However, he said he did not intend to claim asylum permanent, saying "I don't want any aid from the British government. I want to be a good citizen and I am a good citizen also in Pakistan. I want to live in peace."
Haider believes the person who threatened him wanted him to help fix the fourth and fifth ODIs against South Africa. He described the conversation but said he did not know the man's identity. "He said, 'If you work with us, we will give you a lot of money. If [not and] you go back home, we will kill you and your family.'"
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