Former South Africa cricketer Gulam Bodi sentenced five years imprisonment for spot-fixing

The former South Africa batsman Gulam Bodi has been sentenced to five years of imprisonment for his role in the spot-fixing scandal. Pretoria Commercial Crimes Court announced the decision on Friday. Bodi was found guilty for his involvement in spot-fixing in South Africa domestic tournament in 2015. The left-hander, however, is set to appeal against the sentence as well.

Gulam Bodi has become the first sportsman from his country to be punished under the Prevention and Combatting of Corrupt Activities Act of 2004. This act was introduced after Hansie Cronje was found guilty in the match-fixing scandal back in 2000. Last year in November, Bodi pleaded guilty on eight counts of corruption. He also begged to the court for mercy after he was told that he will be jailed for almost 15 years.

His sentencing was delayed on more than occasion because Bodi’s lawyer withdrew from the case due to the lack of funds with the former cricketer.

Gulam Bodi played 2 ODIs and 1 T20I for South Africa

Gulam Bodi, during his short international career, played two One-Day Internationals and a solitary T20I for South Africa. He came extremely close to playing the Tests for his country in May 2002. He was called up to the national team when Nicky Boje and Paul Adams both got injured during the Caribbean tour.

But his career never took off and losing the Lions contract led to Gulam Bodi taking the wrong route it seems. According to court documents, he had been approached by Indian “bookmakers” as early as 2014, Cricbuzz reported. He also approached the likes of Alviro Petersen, Lonwabo Tsotsobe, Jean Symes, Pumi Matshikwe and Thami Tsolekile.

However, he admitted to have made a huge mistake in an attempt to fix the matches after his initial suspension. “It’s been a very big mistake in my life. Cricket is something I love and know. I was a first-class cricketer for 18 years. You can’t just kiss that goodbye,” he had said. Bodi also used to sell potatoes during that period when he was trying to rebuild his life.

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