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'Calls would come through to my room, at times at 2 and 3 o'clock in the morning'

In India, I was contacted by Sanjay, who gave me a local SIM card so he could call me for information and which would also be helpful for Internet connecting and email. It was not compatible with my cell phone and could not be used. I later received a cell phone and handset sent up to my room which...with which it was compatible. I initially had no intention of involving other players and thought that I could satisfy Sanjay by accurately forecasting outcomes.

Sanjay was not satisfied with this and pressured me to speak to some other players to manipulate results. In the buildup to the series, the pressure on me increased. I received calls on a regular basis from Hamid and Sanjay. Even when the cell phone was switched off, calls would come through to my room, at times at 2 and 3 o'clock in the morning. I felt increasingly stressed. I had already taken money from Sanjay and it became increasingly difficult to resist each request to speak to other team members and manipulate results.

During the Indian tour, Maurice also phoned on a few occasions to engage the team direct and to congratulate us on wins. But apart from general discussions, he did not request information or offer me anything. I spoke to Pieter Strydom before the first Test in India in Mumbai. His recount of this discussion contained in his written statement to the Commission is correct. At the time of speaking to him, I was already (audio unclear) and his remarks (audio unclear) shamed me, and he in no way indicated that he was interested in receiving money. I did not speak with any other members of the team. Thereafter, I tried to pass off the whole incident with Strydom as a joke. Under further pressure from Sanjay, I subsequently made faint attempts to approach other players in respect of the second Test. I spoke with Kallis, Boucher and (audio unclear). Their recounts to the media, that I think they thought I was joking...

I did not approach any other players in respect of the Test matches and the results in the second Test and the subsequent Tests were not manipulated. I then told Sanjay that perhaps I could do something in the first one-day international in India, thinking that if I could get the match out of the way, that might satisfy him. My intention was not to involve other players but merely to forecast which way the match was going to go, looking at the pitch and conditions. Sanjay was adamant that (audio unclear) that this could not be done. So I suggested that I would speak to some of the other players; lying to him to get rid of him after the match. I ignored Sanjay (audio unclear) to leave for the first one-day at Cochin but then I was told the next morning at nets to go ahead. I told him when we met that I had spoken to other players, which was untrue. We were supposed to lose the match but I couldn't go through with it. I decided that I couldn't not try and would give it my best shot. As it happened, we got 301 for 3 and I got 19 off 20 balls. But India won quite comfortably after Hayward was injured. I honestly tried to win the match, even at this stage and believe we would have done so if Hayward was not injured.

When I got back to the hotel, Sanjay was upset because we had scored 300 runs and I blamed the Indian wicketkeeper for 3 chances that he had missed; obviously not revealing that the South African players concerned had not been involved and, in fact, none of them knew anything about the matches. I did not receive any money for that match and I believe that Sanjay lost money.

Hamid kept phoning me and saying that I should speak to Sanjay who was now (audio unclear) some money and I was now expected to deliver something. (audio unclear) the players were angry with me for not giving them money. He said not to worry, that he would make up for it during the rest of the one-day series. However, now I will say that none of the players and none of the one-day matches were involved, except for discussions with Gibbs and Williams, in respect of the fifth one-day international, which I will deal with in due course.

During the second, third and fourth one-day games, I was really only forecasting what I thought would happen and I wanted to win the series. I received no money and tried my best throughout. The pressure on me to produce information and results was increasing. I was not only being continuously phoned by Hamid but also by Sanjay. I tried to deal with this by lying that I had spoken to players and done things which I had not, in fact, done.

I cannot recall all the names that I mentioned nor the figures and amounts. I cannot recall all the conversations, the times and dates and what was said on each occasion. Also, a great deal of what I told Sanjay was untruthful, particularly about the involvement of other players. Prior to the third one-day international, I had untruthfully told Sanjay that (audio unclear) was involved. He therefore wanted to know if they would be playing in the third one-day international and if any further players could be involved. (audio unclear).

A discussion with Sanjay took place the night before the fifth one-day international during which we discussed Gibbs' score, a total of 371 and Williams' bowling figures. If the results were as agreed, Sanjay was to pay (audio unclear) US dollars into my national bank account. Since playing for Leicestershire in 1995, I had a bank account with National Bank (audio unclear) which I used for my (audio unclear). As a result of the (audio unclear) of the one-day international at Nagpur on the 19th of March 2000, no money changed hands in respect to any of the matches in India, all of which were true results. That applies also to the fifth one-day game despite the earlier agreement about the result.

By the end of the year, I was under severe pressure to provide some result and my attempts to string Sanjay along were no longer effective. He and Hamid had become increasingly upset by the fact that I had not been able to fix results, in consequence of which they had been losing more and more money. The morning of the fifth one-day match at Nagpur, Sanjay phoned me and urged me to go ahead with fixing the match and I gave in. I was required to ensure that Gibbs would score less than 20 runs, that Williams would go for more than 50 runs in his 10 overs, and that the total score should be no more than 270 runs. I was to be paid for doing this.

I spoke to Herschelle Gibbs and Henry Williams as described by them in their testimonies. The fifth one-day international was not fixed or thrown. (audio unclear) we were not able to carry out the plan. I know that Herschelle batted as well as he could. It also quite truly went out of his mind once he walked onto the field and, in fact, it was one of the best knocks that I have seen him play. He scored 74 off 53 balls and Henry Williams (audio unclear) bowled well. At lunch, I told Williams that we must win the game and that we should give our best. I tried my best and scored 38 runs off 31 balls before falling to a very good catch by Rahul Dravid. We not only scored more than 270 runs but the total of 320 was also South Africa's highest against India.

While this does not detract from what I have done to the game, I truly believe that once we stepped on the field, we could not go through with it and gave our best, as indicated by Herschelle's unbelievable run out to win us the game. I have not spoken to Sanjay since the Indian tour and apart from the money I received from him in Durban, received no payments from him or Hamid. After the 2000 Indian tour, (audio unclear) I was in Dubai for the Sharjah Cup in March of this year. I was again contacted by Hamid. He indicated that Sanjay wished to resume contact with me along the same lines as in India. I had by now developed sufficient resolve to put it all behind me and told him that I was not interested. I thereafter had no contact with Hamid after the incident described above until the 7th of April when I telephoned him and told him what had happened in relation to the one-day games in India had broken.

Hamid was around and about during the Sharjah Cup, asking for the odd source of information and news on the team. He never paid me or offered me any favours or benefits nor did I receive anything from him. I gave him nothing out of the ordinary. The night before the final of the Sharjah Cup, I received a phone call from a man, who did not name himself, who wanted to speak to me about his promotion. He enquired whether Lance Klusener and I would promote some of his products and tried to set up a meeting early the next day. He also said he was willing to give $100,000 now and $100,000 after the match if we would play badly. I told him we were not interested (audio unclear)... to Lance Klusener.

I apologize to the officials and members of the Department of Sports including the Minister of Sport for the embarrassment which my conduct has caused them. On the morning of the 11th of April, I knew and decided that I could no longer live with myself or with the situation that I had created. I wished to unburden myself.

Moreover, I have created problems for other people and players and it was not only a question of myself. I truly wish to protect those players whom I have compromised (audio unclear) and responsibility. I must say, however, that I was also activated by a measure of self-interest. Apart from (audio unclear), Pieter Strydom (audio unclear) the fifth Test against England at Centurion Park.

The only other bet I have made in cricket was during the World Cup when I placed one pound on South Africa to win it at 4:1 odds. I hope that my experience will serve other cricket players and act as a lesson. My only consolation is the knowledge that despite my inexcusable behavior, South Africa has never thrown or fixed a match. I cannot exaggerate the level of temptation which is placed in front of cricketers for doing or not doing what can easily be presented as furnishing information. Once money has been accepted for something that appears to be innocuous, one is compromised and it becomes difficult to turn back.

I think a serious effort should be made to educate and warn players particularly before tours to the sub-continent about the dangers involved in sports fixing, betting and gambling. No professional cricket player has ever experienced the harsh realities of commerce and the gambling world. As long as there is gambling on sporting events, legal or otherwise, players will continue to be approached, pressured and tempted.

I was wrong in succumbing and (audio unclear) try and cover up. I do think it is important, however, that even if it should be made, to prevent it from happening again. (audio unclear), change rooms and practice areas should be monitored to ensure that strangers and hangers-on are not afforded access to players. The players should be briefed properly and prepared about the risks and problems so that they can deal with the inevitable approaches; and the cricketing authorities need to impose management procedures to redress the problem.

That is my statement.

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