A match-fixing expert has exposed details about Lou Vincent's admissions to International Cricket Council authorities on the Daily Mail website.
Ed Hawkins, author of the award-winning Bookie, Gambler, Fixer, Spy: A Journey to the Heart of Cricket's Underworld on corruption in cricket, has exposed the depth of Vincent's admissions.
They include:
• an offer of a woman and cash to fix matches.
• a threat by what Hawkins describes as 'a world-famous international' after a fix failed to come off.
• the identification of 12 games around the world which involved fixing, including three in England between 2008 and 2011.
• linking the start of his fixing to the Twenty20 Indian Cricket League in 2008.
• accusations at least six players he played with were involved in corruption.
Hawkins writes that signs the fixes were 'on' ranged from the colour of Vincent's bat handle to pulling away when the bowler was running in.
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The Daily Mail quotes ICC documents where Vincent's alleged to have told investigators:
"When you're under whatever this power is that [the world-famous international] has over me, I felt I couldn't say 'no' to him . . . I didn't want to throw away the chance of getting all that money.''
An Indian, known as VG, approached him about a bat sponsorship deal. Vincent met him in his hotel room where he was greeted by a woman. VG gave him $15,000 and said the woman was a 'present'. Vincent said he was not interested and asked him to put the money in the room safe.
Vincent then went to the room of the 'world-famous international' to tell him what had happened. The former international is understood to have said 'you are now working for me'.
He is also said to have told Vincent that his long battle with depression, which ended his international career, was 'perfect' to help him fix.
Vincent's instructions are described as "always the same''. He was told to score around 10 to 15 off 20 balls then get out. Having learned the tricks of the trade, Vincent would soon employ them in the county game, trying to corrupt team-mates and throwing his wicket away for money.
However, when he failed to keep his side of the bargain, he felt the wrath of the 'world-famous international' who was pulling the strings.
For one match Vincent was, as usual, expected to score 15 or so off 20 balls and then get out. But, in attempting to get stumped, he accidentally hit the ball for six. "I thought 'what have I done','' Vincent told the ICC.
After the game, the former international cricketer refused to speak to Vincent but later demanded he visit him in his room. "He waved a bat around close to my head and threatened to hit me with it. He said I'd cost him millions and accused me of fixing for someone else.''
Vincent told the ICC he justified the fixes in England because his contract with Sussex was 'only for 22,000 pounds' and he was unhappy at how the ECB had made him wait three years for a British passport.
