Three Pakistan cricketers implicated in match-fixing allegations are headed to London, England, for an internal inquiry with Pakistani officials.

Test captain Salman Butt and pace bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir left the team hotel in Taunton on Wednesday morning, not long after their teammates had departed for a training session ahead of a warmup match against Somerset on Thursday.

Four Pakistan security members kept the media from approaching the three players in the hotel lobby before they left in a taxi.

Pakistan team manager Yawar Saeed said Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt had ordered Thursday's inquiry at the Pakistan High Commission in Knightsbridge in London. The commissioner will attend the meeting.

Pakistan one-day captain Shahid Afridi is hoping the match against Somerset will turn the attention back to cricket.

"We are definitely looking forward to getting back to cricket," Afridi said. "Myself and the coach [Waqar Younis] are trying to keep morale high. It's always very difficult in these conditions against a good team, but they are all really focused.

"What has happened has gone. We are here to play good cricket. It's a big challenge for me personally — playing in English conditions is always difficult. We are all looking forward to it. It has been really difficult, but we can forget everything, get out, play the cricket and entertain the people."

Scandal broke Sunday

British newspaper the News of the World alleged Sunday that Amir and Asif were paid to deliberately bowl no-balls in the opening day of the fourth Test against England at Lord's last week. Butt and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal were also implicated in the story.

Asif, Amir and Butt had their mobile phones confiscated by police, who also searched hotel rooms and questioned players on Saturday as part of an investigation also involving the International Cricket Council's Anti-Corruption and Security Unit.

Middleman Mazhar Majeed, who was captured on film saying when the no-balls would be bowled in the newspaper sting, was arrested by Scotland Yard police on Saturday and released on bail the following day.

Asif's former girlfriend, meanwhile, has been asked to give evidence to the anti-corruption unit, according to a spokesman.

It's not the first time that Asif had been embroiled in the off-field controversy.

In 2006, he was sent home before the Champions Trophy in India after testing positive for the banned substance nandrolone along with fellow paceman Shoaib Akhtar.

In 2008, he was detained at Dubai for 19 days when a small amount of opium was found in his wallet as he transferred at the airport.

Pakistan and England will play Twenty20 matches on Sunday and Tuesday before a five-match, one-day international series.

"It's a challenge and we will try to make sure they are focused on the game," Pakistan coach Waqar Younis said Tuesday of motivating his players to face Somerset.