A Delhi court has confirmed that some of the matches during the India versus South Africa series in 2000 were fixed, while attempts were made to fix other matches. The court in India, which had framed charges against four accused in the match-fixing scandal case, spoke about the fixing incidents during the two Tests and five ODIs, held from February 19 to March 19, 2000.
As per the Delhi Court, the investigation into the first Test match in Mumbai from February 24 to 28 revealed some startling details around match fixing. India Today news website shared the excerpts of the court statement in the report, which read, “It was decided that the South African Team, would not score more than 250 runs in an inning, and the same is evident from the statement of Pieter Strydom and Hansie Cronje before the King’s Commission.”
For the second Test match in Bengaluru from March 2 to 6, the court stated, “Though Hansie Cronje had spoken to other players as per the statements made before the King’s Commission, this match was not fixed, although an attempt was made to fix it.”
In regard to the first ODI in Kochi on March 9, the evidence showed that the match fixing happened, and the Delhi Court remarked, “The conversation recorded on March 16, 2000, wherein Hansie Cronje demands outstanding payment and Hansie Cronje’s statement before the King’s Commission admitting receiving money from Sanjeev Chawla, clearly prove that the 1st One-Day International was a fixed match.”
“The statement by Hansie Cronje made before the King’s Commission that he had informed Sanjay (alias Sanjeev Chawla) about losing the first One-Day International is further corroborated by the statement of others made before the King’s Commission,” the court added.
The next three ODIs in Jamshedpur on March 12, Faridabad on March 15, and Baroda on March 17 were not fixed according to the court, but Hansie Cronje helped the accusers in placing bets and earning huge profits by “forecasting as to what would happen.”
The fifth and final ODI in Nagpur on March 19, the court concluded that Hansie Cronje had agreed to fix the score of the match through Herschelle Gibbs and Henry Williams, but these two players forgot about $15,000 each in the heat of the game.