Reuters 
 
London, Aug 26: Darrell Hair, the umpire at the centre of the ball-tampering controversy involving Pakistan, offered in a letter to quit in return for $500,000 (265,000 pounds), the International Cricket Council said on Friday.

ICC Chief Executive Malcolm Speed told a news conference Australian Hair was under great stress when he wrote the letter.

"He had no dishonest, underhand or malicious intent," Speed said. "He was seeking to find a solution in the best interests of the game."  

An ICC executive board will meet in Dubai next Saturday (September 2) to decide any action over the contents of the letter which was circulated to the media.

"He is not sacked, not suspended and has not been charged. but I didn't guarantee that each of those positions would be the case indefinitely," said Speed.

A disciplinary hearing for Pakistan captain Inzamuam-ul Haq, for ball tampering and bringing the game into disrepute following the dispute with Hair during the fourth Test against England last week, is likely to take place in the second half of September, Speed said.

No exact date had been set, he added.

Speed said he was "extremely surprised with the content (of the letter) and was concerned how I should deal with it". He consulted three lawyers, who advised him to make the contents public.

The letter had been passed on to the relevant authorities, including the Pakistan Cricket Board, he added.