PANJIM: The Goa Cricket Association (GCA) on Thursday terminated C M Gautam’s contract and named Darshan Misal as the new captain for the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament which begins on Friday, after the wicket-keeper batsman was arrested for spot-fixing in a domestic league.
The development come after Gautam was arrested by the Bengaluru Central Crime Branch along with Abrar Kazi for allegedly accepting money to spot-fix in the scandal-ridden Karnataka Premier League (KPL).
“Once the news came out, we terminated his (Gautam’s) contract and have written to BCCI as well regarding the same. He has been replaced by Darshan Misal as the captain and we have sent a player Prathamesh as his replacement (for the tournament),” Goa Cricket Association Secretary Vipul Phadke told media.
The 33-year-old Gautam is a seasoned campaigner having turned up for Delhi Daredevils, Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL.
“It’s a shocking development for us. We had brought him on board as a professional cricketer this time. And he was also named the captain. But we have already written to the BCCI informing about our stand,” Phadke said.
Gautam, perhaps the biggest name to be caught in the KPL fixing scandal, has 94 first-class games to his credit and was a regular in the Karnataka team. He shifted allegiance to Goa this season.
In the first match in the Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Goa will take on Baroda in Visakhapatnam.
