Bangladeshi umpire Nadir Shah has vigorously denied the charges levied against him and fellow umpires. Pix: AFP/Farjana Khan GodhulyLONDON: An investigation has been launched after an Indian TV station claimed several umpires were willing to fix matches for cash, reported Sky Sports.

India TV broadcast footage of a sting operation, undertaken by undercover reporters in August and September, that exposed six International Cricket Council (ICC) umpires from Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The ICC said none of the six officiated in any matches at the World Twenty20 that finished on Sunday and was won by the West Indies.

"The ICC and their relevant members have been made aware of the allegations made by India TV this evening and calls on the station to turn over any information which can assist the ICC's urgent investigations into this matter," the ICC said in a statement.

"The ICC re-iterate their zero-tolerance towards corruption whether alleged against players or officials."

India TV identified the umpires in the sting and claimed three of them agreed to give favorable decisions, including in warm-up matches for the World Twenty20.

Another was filmed in the sting, called Operation World Cup, allegedly promising to "revolt" against Sri Lankan cricket, and the fifth official was reported to have been willing to ensure decisions would be given in favor of India.

It is not clear what tournament or matches the two umpires were referring to.

The sixth umpire shared the pitch and toss reports as well as playing line-ups for the warm-up match between England and Australia on Sept 17 in exchange for 50,000 rupees (£592), according to India TV.

A seventh umpire, from Bangladesh, was approached but refused to co-operate.

The allegations come almost a year after Pakistan players Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were jailed for their roles in a betting scam during a test series against England in 2010.

The trio were convicted of conspiring with an agent, Mazhar Majeed, to ensure the delivery of deliberate no-balls. Butt received two-and-a-half years, Asif was sentenced to one year and the then 19-year-old Amir six months.

That was the biggest fixing scandal in the sport since South Africa captain Hansie Cronje was banned for life in 2000 for taking bribes from bookmakers.

- mD