The former Test wicketkeeper Thami Tsolekile has been banned for 12 years by Cricket South Africa following a Twenty20 corruption scandal.
As revealed by the Guardian in January, Tsolekile was being investigated for allegedly receiving at least R75,000 (£4,200) to improperly influence an aspect of last year’s Ram Slam competition.
With that investigation now advanced but ongoing, Tsolekile and three other players – Jean Symes, Pumelela Matshikwe, Ethy Mbhalati – have received lengthy suspensions, effectively ending their careers.
Tsolekile, the former Proteas wicketkeeper, has received a ban of 12 years for four different charges. They are “contriving to fix a match or matches in the 2015 Ram Slam; failing to disclose to the CSA anti-corruption officer the full details of an approach to engage in corrupt conduct; failing to disclose full details of matters evidencing a breach of the code by another participant; and obstructing or delaying the investigation by destroying evidence that was relevant to the investigation.”
All four have accepted their suspensions, which took effect on 1 August.
The CSA chief executive, Haroon Lorgat, said: “It is our stated position that any form of corruption in the game will be dealt with severely. We will leave no stone unturned and we will do everything in our power to protect the integrity of the game.
“Corruption is a very serious matter – and for this reason, we have devoted extensive time and resources to fully investigate every shred of evidence.
“We are still finalising certain aspects of the investigation. While there has been no evidence to suggest that an actual fix in any match was carried out, these players all participated in material discussions about match fixing.
“In fact, they all went further and accepted, or agreed to accept in the future, sums of money which they knew or ought to have known was given to them to procure a breach of the code, or bring the game into disrepute.”
A statement from CSA added: “The banning of these four players follows lengthy investigations and the previous imposition by CSA in January 2016 of a 20-year ban on former Proteas, Lions and Titans player Gulam Bodi after Bodi had admitted charges of contriving or attempting to fix matches in the 2015 Ram Slam T20 Challenge Series. Bodi acted as an intermediary for international betting syndicates, approaching certain players with a view to engaging in fixing activities during the competition.”
