A former South African cricketer has been charged with match-fixing and corruption in the Ram Slam T20 Challenge on Wednesday.
The name of the player is yet to be revealed but it is believed that he is the same player the Cricket South Africa (CSA) had mentioned about in the press release back in December 2015.
CSA had announced about an "intermediary" who was charged under its anti-corruption code for influencing results in South Africa's domestic T20 championship.
This alleged former Proteas cricketer had also been charged with "failing, or refusing without compelling justification, to cooperate with an investigation carried out by an anti-corruption official."
According to The Guardian, a number of domestic players along with their ringleader will be facing a legal case. Reports also suggest that the ringleader might be jailed for his part in this match-fixing scandal.
The country is bracing itself for yet another match-fixing scandal since Hansie Cronje was banned. In the year 2000, Cronje was charged with match-fixing and was subsequently banned from cricket for life.
According to the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act Law, which was drafted in 2004, four years after Cronje's banning from cricket, match-fixing was considered to be illegal in the country.
"Our attitude to corruption will always be one of zero tolerance and we are confident that we have the necessary structures in place to effectively deal with any corrupt activity," CSA president Haroon Lorgat had said in December.
"We will relentlessly pursue under our code and the law of the land any persons we believe to be involved in corrupting the game and, with assistance from the police, we will also seek criminal prosecution."
This is indeed a bad news for the nation just ahead of the third Test match between South Africa and England which will be held at the Johannesburg Stadium Thursday onwards.
