Salman Butt

Salman Butt (Punjabi/Urdu: سلمان بٹ, Salmān Baṭṭ; born 7 October 1984 in Lahore, Pakistan) is a Pakistani cricketer who was a regular Test and ODI left-handed opening batsman. He made his Test debut on 3 September 2003 in the third Test against Bangladesh, and a year later made his ODI debut against West Indies on 22 September 2004. He was appointed captain of the Pakistan Test squad on 16 July 2010. On August 29, 2010, he was implicated in allegations of spot-fixing. As of February 5, 2011, Butt is serving a 10-year ban, of which five years is a suspended sentence.^[1]    
After his debut, Butt was dropped and struggled to regain his place due to some stiff competition for the openers' spots. He returned for the Champions' Trophy in 2004 and scored his first fifty for Pakistan in the Paktel Cup against Sri Lanka. In the ODI against India on 13 November 2004, as Pakistan chased down 292, he formed partnerships first with Shoaib Malik, putting on 113, and subsequently with Inzamam-Ul-Haq. Despite having to retire hurt for seven overs due to severe cramp, he returned to steer Pakistan home, finishing on 108 not out.^[3]
On 17 July 2010, the Pakistan Cricket Board appointed Butt as captain of the Pakistani Test squad in place of Shahid Afridi, who announced his retirement from Test cricket after Pakistan lost the first test match against Australia.^[5] He became the 28th captain of the Pakistani Test team and the fifth to lead them since January 2009.^[5]
Yet 2005 saw little improvement, and doubts circulated about his defensive technique, causing him to be shuffled in and out of the side. But things started looking up again during the winter Test series against England, in which he scored a century and two fifties, with a more cautious attitude to his innings building than he had previously shown.^[4]