Canada’s loss to New Zealand at this year’s men’s T20 World Cup is being reviewed by the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) after fresh allegations aired on Canadian television. The ACU is already looking into a separate matter concerning selection pressure within Cricket Canada, and now has two live files on its desk.
What triggered the scrutiny
On Friday night CBC’s investigative broadcast, the fifth estate, released a 43-minute film entitled “Corruption, Crime and Cricket”. Among several governance complaints, the programme highlights the fifth over of New Zealand’s chase in Hamilton, bowled by Canada’s new captain, Dilpreet Bajwa.
The detail that matters
• Match: Canada v New Zealand, group stage, T20 World Cup, India/Sri Lanka
• Situation: New Zealand 35 for 2 after four overs, chasing 148
• Over in question: Bajwa’s first – began with a no-ball, followed by a leg-side wide, 15 runs conceded in total
Bajwa, 22 at the time and primarily a batter who bowls occasional off-spin, had been appointed skipper barely three weeks before the tournament. Canada had started with pace – Jaskaran Singh then Dilon Heyliger – both leaking runs. A switch to slow left-arm spinner Saad bin Zafar produced a wicket-maiden, Heyliger removed another in the fourth, and then Bajwa handed himself the ball. The documentary suggests that single over is suspicious, though it stops short of offering hard evidence.
Parallel investigation
A separate ACU inquiry concerns an audio recording from 2025 said to capture then head coach Khurram Chohan claiming senior board members leaned on him to pick particular players. The tape also mentions attempted match-fixing, although investigators have so far struggled to translate that claim into proof strong enough for charges.
What the ICC is saying
“The ACU is aware of the programme broadcast by CBC,” Andrew Ephgrave, interim General Manager of the ICC’s Integrity Unit, told ESPNcricinfo. “Consistent with its established operating procedures, the ACU is not in a position to comment on the substance of any allegations contained within it.”
Ephgrave added: “Governance matters in relation to ICC Members are considered by the ICC, where they fall under its jurisdiction, in accordance with the ICC’s standard constitutional processes.”
He also outlined the unit’s broader brief: “The ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit operates across three core functions: intelligence, prevention and education, and investigation. These functions operate concurrently and are applied wherever there is a credible basis to believe the integrity of the sport may be at risk.”
More voices
The film features another former Canada coach, Pubudu Dassanayake, who says similar pressure was applied before the 2024 T20 World Cup. According to the fifth estate, the board tried “to force” Dassanayake to select certain players and, when he didn’t, … (the broadcaster’s claim tails off, offering no public documentation to back it up).
Next steps
The ACU tends to work quietly, gathering betting data, interviewing participants and cross-checking phone and bank records before deciding whether a formal charge is justified. No player or official has yet been charged in either case, and Cricket Canada has not responded publicly.
For Canada’s players this is another unwelcome headline after a challenging tournament. For the ICC, it is a reminder that vigilance remains essential well beyond the sport’s traditional power bases.
