look news india
Match fixing is a big crime in a sport like cricket. After this is revealed, the players who commit this crime also go to jail. A similar case has been seen in South African cricket. Where an 8 year old match fixing scandal has come to light, on charges of which three players have been arrested. Thami Solekil, Lonavo Sotobe and Athi Mbalati have been arrested for the incident. These three cricketers were arrested on 18, 28 and 29 November. He is accused of being involved in match fixing in the 2015–16 T20 RamSlam Challenge tournament.
3 players arrested
The arrest was made by the DPCI’s Serious Corruption Investigation Unit. The investigation was based on revelations made by a whistleblower in 2016. An investigation was launched by Cricket South Africa’s anti-corruption officer after Ghulam Bodi’s suspicious activities were discovered. Thami Solekil and Lonavo Tsotobe have been charged with 5 offenses under the Prevention and Control of Corruption Act, 2004 (PRECCA). Both players appeared in the Specialized Commercial Crime Court in Pretoria on 29 November 2024, where the case is next heard on 26 February 2025.
Ghulam Bodi’s name came up
Investigation revealed that Ghulam Bodi had tried to influence the results of three domestic T20 matches by contacting several players. He was part of this conspiracy with Indian bookies. Boddy was arrested in 2018 and pleaded guilty to eight crimes in 2019, after which he was sentenced to five years in prison.
Cricket career of these three cricketers
Of the three players arrested, only Lonavo Sotobe is part of the South African national team. He has played 5 Tests, 61 ODIs and 23 T20 International matches. His last international match was in the 2014 T20 World Cup. Whereas, the careers of Thami Solekil and Athi Mbalati were limited to first-class and List A cricket.