Salman Butt, the former captain of the Pakistan cricket team, has received a 30-month prison sentence for his involvement in the plot to deliver intentional no-balls during last year’s Test match against England.
Mohammad Asif, the former world number two Test bowler, aged 28, has been sentenced to one year in prison, while 19-year-old bowler Mohammad Amir has been given a six-month sentence.
Mazhar Majeed, the cricket agent, received a sentence of two years and eight months.
During the court proceedings, it was revealed that the deliberate no-balls were intended to demonstrate to gamblers that the game could be manipulated.
Mr. Justice Cooke, the presiding judge, remarked that the scandal would forever stain the integrity of cricket matches.
“The reputation and integrity of what was once a sport, now a business, is tarnished in the eyes of everyone, including the many young individuals who viewed you as heroes and would have given anything to possess the levels of skill that you achieved and to play at such heights.”
The Pakistan Cricket Board has deemed the players’ convictions “a sad day for Pakistan cricket.”