When Mohammad Amir bowled a no-ball against England on the opening day of the 2010 Test at Lord’s, no one could have imagined his long stri...
When Mohammad Amir bowled a no-ball against England on the opening day of the 2010 Test at Lord’s, no one could have imagined his long stride past the crease marked the first step in a historic fixing scandal.
Two days later it was revealed that three no-balls – two by Amir, and one by his pace partner Mohammad Asif – had been part of a shady betting deal.
Pakistan’s captain Salman Butt had orchestrated the deliberate no-balls in return for money offered by undercover journalist Mazhar Majeed posing as a bookmaker.
The scandal, exposed in the sting by Britain’s now-defunct News of the World tabloid, rocked the cricketing world, and aftershocks can still be felt a decade on in Pakistan.
Not only did that dark morning at the revered ‘home of cricket’ derail the careers of three players who were banned and jailed, the saga also led to calls for Pakistan to be booted from international cricket.
Butt, Amir and Asif were tried in a London court for offences under the Gambling Act and were jailed in November 2011.
Announcing the sentences, the judge underscored the severity of the crime.
“The image and integrity of what was once a game, but is now a business, is damaged in the eyes of all, including the many youngsters...
