Hansie Cronje was a beloved figure in South African cricket at the turn of the century but, just four months later, his reputation was irredeemably shattered because of his role in the match-fixing scandal.
On April 11, 2000, Cronje was sacked as Proteas captain during one of cricket’s most shameful episodes in a saga which rumbled on for months afterwards as the magnitude of the player’s misdemeanours were exposed.
Here, the PA news agency reflects on the story.
Hero to villain
The picture emerges
An outraged Cronje strenuously rebuffed the allegations at first but soon afterwards he was stripped of the South Africa captaincy, a position he had held without challenge for six years. That came after Dr Ali Bacher – chairman of the United Cricket Board, the precursor to Cricket South Africa – revealed Cronje had not been “entirely honest” in his denials. Cronje later confessed to a number of allegations at a Government-appointed King Commission.
Corruption uncovered
England deceived
South Africa were in an unassailable 2-0 lead heading into the final Test in January 2000 at Centurion, where a washout seemed inevitable after four days of rain. However, in an act that bemused traditionalists but was widely lauded, Cronje approached England captain Nasser Hussain about a contrived finish which would see the tourists chase 249 in 76 overs, which they did with two wickets and five balls to spare. Cronje was found to have been paid around £5,000 and a leather jacket for his wife to make sure there was a positive result – unbeknown to England.
Aftermath
