Dr Abdul Wahid Soomro (MNA Pakistan Peoples Party)

The ECB and the Professional Cricketers' Association have sent a pre-action letter to PCB chairman, Ijaz Butt, seeking a "full and unreserved apology" foralleging that England's players were involved in fixing the outcome of the third ODI at The Oval, which Pakistan won by 23 runs.

The letter, sent on behalf of the England team, advised Butt that "if a satisfactory response was not received, legal proceedings will be commenced against him without further notice."

In an extraordinary statement last Sunday, which he read out to ESPNcricinfo, Butt had said, "There is loud and clear talk in bookie circles that some English players have taken enormous amounts of money to lose the match [the third ODI]. No wonder there was such a collapse." He had also accused certain "august cricket bodies" of conspiring to defraud Pakistan and Pakistan cricket.

However, in a strongly-worded statement on behalf of the ECB and the England team, it was announced that the final two matches of Pakistan's tour would go ahead as planned. "It remains in the best interests of world cricket, the players and in particular of cricket supporters that the tour should continue, and it would set a dangerous precedent to call off a tour based on the misguided and inaccurate remarks made by one individual."