CRICKET chiefs launched a probe today after The Sun handed over a bombshell dossier on attempts to fix the Third Ashes Test.

Two bookies offered to sell us details of rigged periods of play which could be bet on to win millions of pounds.

Fixers Sobers Joban, left, and Priyank Saxena asked for up to £140,000 to “spot fix” markets Credit: Dan Charity - The Sun

They asked undercover reporters for up to £140,000 for spot-fix information on a specified minimum number of runs scored in a period of overs.

The Indian Mr Big said: “Before match. I will tell you this over, this runs and then you have to put all the bets on that over.”

Asked if it was a good source he said: “Absolutely correct information.”

The pair said corrupt players “signal” the fix is on by making a subtle gesture on the field, such as changing their gloves.

The fixers reeled off players they say work as their 'puppets' Credit: Getty Images - Getty

Spotters in the crowd then tell bookies who quickly bet millions into the underground Indian market.

The pair reeled off players they say work as their “puppets”.

They also claimed to be working with a fixer in Australian cricket known as The Silent Man.

He is said to work with former and current internationals including a World Cup-winning all-rounder.

Fixer A - SOBERS JOBAN Joban is a former Indian state cricketer who boasted how he is the man tasked as the go-between to crooked players. Joban, 31, told how he once played alongside current Indian skipper Virat Kohli for Delhi’s team. He said he had been involved in arranging fixes for 10 years with bookmaker Priyank Saxena. He boasted of connections to top players and told how he had to look “clean” to protect himself. Joban has a house in Vasant Vihar - the swanky, diplomatic area of Delhi - and is engaged to a Russian martial arts specialist. His social media profiles show off a lavish lifestyle in which he is often travelling around the globe on expensive holidays.

No current England stars were named as involved.

The International Cricket Council said our revelations were of “grave concern”, adding: “We take all allegations of corruption seriously and welcome The Sun’s offer to share this information.”

Cricket corruption expert Ed Hawkins added: “This is potentially disastrous for the game. The Ashes is one of the pillars of cricket.”

The Mr Big, ex-state cricketer Sobers Joban, and partner Priyank Saxena, a tobacco businessman and bookmaker, were secretly filmed at hotels in Dubai and Delhi in our four-month investigation.

Fixer B - PRIYANK SAXENA BOOKMAKER and businessman Priyank Saxena was described by his partner Sobers as a tobacco and spice tycoon with business interests in South Africa. The low-key bookmaker from Delhi is said to be the leading mind behind the operation working hand-in-hand with corrupt cricketers. His partner Sobers Joban told our reporters he was an illegal bookmaker running an operation in south Delhi .

The Third Ashes Test started overnight in Perth, Australia, and is due to last five days.

Joban said he could get players to follow “scripts” — such how many runs would be scored in a session, or an innings, when a wicket will fall and what a team would do if it won the toss.

He said: “I will give you work in Ashes Test. Session runs. Maybe day one, two, three. We have two session work, one session costs 60 lakh rupees (£69,000), two sessions 120 lakh rupees (138,000).

“If you are interested Priyank will talk to the Silent Man. If you want to go with him alright, but you will not sit in meeting. I don’t know what he give, script or session.

“Right now if I tell you he want one crore (£116,000), he might want five crores (£580,000).”

Fixer Sobers Joban talks to one of our undercover team Credit: Dan Charity - The Sun

Asked if the offer was confirmed, Saxena, replied: “One thousand per cent”.

Later in two recorded calls, Saxena said he had spoken to The Silent Man and a fix attempt was due in the middle of the Ashes.

He said: “I have sent the email (to Australia) and am waiting for a reply. When I am sure everything is confirmed then I will pass it on.

“I have to go to Australia with someone. I’ll meet the Man, he will tell me the script and the rate.”

Last week in another call, Joban confirmed the fix attempt was on.

How the fixes work ILLEGAL betting in India is estimated to be worth an astonishing £100BILLION every year. Controlled by mafia bosses, corrupt bookies target cricketers to arrange fixes by using "clean" middle-men as go-betweens. They often use ex-cricketers and administrators to approach current stars. The ploy means the gangs can avoid detection from anti-corruption units and investigators monitoring players' contact. Players are handed written "scripts" outlining the fixes in detail. These include giving away a minimum number of runs in an over, slowing down the run rate, affecting the result, losing wickets and even rigging the coin toss. A player or captain will then give a pre-arranged signal - which can be as minor as changing a field position or taking off and replacing a helmet - to show the fix is on. Spotters in the ground call through the signal to a handler triggering a surge of live online bets and manipulations on the multi-billion pound illegal market. As well as laying bets on the fix, bookmakers can tailor their odds to send punters the wrong way - raking in tens of millions of pounds on a single game. Other legitimate betting markets are also hit by the huge shifts in underground Indian gambling as many use regular accounts to lay bets. Bookies and punters now stay ahead of the game through pitch-siders - cricket’s equivalent of court-siders in tennis - who use their mobile phones at the ground to tell their client what has happened on the field several seconds before the event is broadcast on television.

He said: “You have to give advance money in India. ***** will tell you each and everything, how to put on bet. I will give you exact figure, like 10 overs, 35 runs (and over).”

In a call this week Joban said details would be passed on after the toss “maybe on day one or two”.

He added: “The Australian bookmakers will buy this match so it will be perfect, perfect news.”

Experts believe the Perth Test is a target for Indian fixers as the time difference to Delhi is 2½ hours — making high speed telephone betting trades easier.

Joban and Saxena were secretly filmed at hotels in Dubai and Delhi in our four-month investigation Credit: Dan Charity - The Sun

The bookies also bragged they can corrupt games in lucrative Twenty20 leagues such as Australia’s Big Bash and the Indian Premier League (IPL).

They urged our investigators, who posed as financiers for underworld London bookies, to pour millions into a new Zimbabwean league where matches would be fixed.

Joban said his gang often don’t arrange fixes on the first and last matches of series to avoid suspicion.

He boasted he had carried out 17 to 18 fixes with two IPL teams.

He said the tournament, and India’s illegal betting market — valued at £1billion, had opened up the possibility of corrupting stars.

Signals for bets Our reporters were told how bowlers can wear long-sleeve tops to signal a fix, or a specific item of clothing, change a field position, swap gloves or remove a helmet and place it back on. Bookies then arrange "session" bet fixes where batsmen and bowlers manipulate over run-rates, as well as the timing of wickets or even the match result. Sobers Joban told our reporters: "Each one is new and each one is old. You have a red t-shirt and I give you a red watch, you wear a red watch. In the IPL five t-shirts will be the full size, five will be given by the team half (sleeves). "He will not give any signal but bowling with a full t-shirt - 6th, 10th over, 15th, 20th over - OK that is the signal. "One wide that is a signal. OK bowling and just stop without delivering any ball - this is a signal. "Sometimes bowlers tell me I'm not comfortable with signal, I prefer first wide. You see I give first ball a bouncer, that's a wide and this is a signal. "Or before deliver the ball I call the keeper and say fine leg is up and I want to come to deep point. "Changing the glove is a batsman signal, and helmet, and stop bowler, so many signals." In 2013 Indian police claimed to have identified signals given by bowler Shanthakumaran Sreesanth for the IPL's Rajasthan Royals which indicated he would give away a minimum number of runs. Cops had seen a hand gesture, rotated watch and even a towel tucked into his trousers during the run-up signalled the fix was on - for which he would be paid £50,000 in cash. Sreesanth was banned by the Indian cricket board. He was subsequently acquitted but has failed to overturn the ban.

He said: “The players have their own bookies and agents, this IPL teach the world about fixing and money.”

Over ten years he claimed to have made “a lot of contacts” with South African, Australian and Pakistani players, who wanted “money guaranteed” and “security”.

Joban alleged one Test player had been paid £175,000 to bowl a wide to manipulate the run rate in a Twenty20 game.

Another batsman was said to have earned bookies a fortune by losing his wicket on the sixth ball of an over.

Speaking of the players’ gestures Joban said: “They are well signalled in advance. In every IPL match the signals are purposely not shown on the live broadcasts.

“I give you a red watch, you wear a red watch.

“In the IPL five t-shirts will be the full size, five will be half sleeves. A player bowls the over in full t-shirt, that is the signal.

“A wide, running in and stopping without bowling, so many signals.”

Bookies bragged they can corrupt games in lucrative Twenty20 leagues such as Australia’s Big Bash and the Indian Premier League (IPL) Credit: AFP - Getty

Once a signal is called in by a spotter, Joban said bookies have two to three minutes to get bets on.

He said: “Phone line is connected and you just call the bets. You sit in twos and threes and fours.”

Crooked players are paid by hawala, a system which operates outside of regular banking. It involves money being transferred to an 'agent' who then instructs an associate in another country to transfer funds to the intended recipient.

Our reporters were told hawala agents in South Africa received funds on behalf of players there.

Mafia syndicate D Company is one of the biggest controllers of such transfers and has been linked to corruption in cricket.

Cricket expert Mr Hawkins said of our investigation: “It’s absolutely bombshell stuff that we are talking about The Ashes in this context. People didn’t think series as big as that would be affected by bookies.”

The fixers claimed to be working with a fixer in Australian cricket known as The Silent Man Credit: Getty - Contributor

An ICC spokesman said: “These are serious allegations and of grave concern. Our anti-corruption unit will continue working to uphold integrity in cricket focusing on education, prevention and disruption of any attempts to corrupt, including in relation to the third Test in Australia.”

The England and Wales Cricket Board said on Thursday morning: "ECB work closely with the ICC and their Anti-Corruption unit to protect the integrity of the international game.

"We are aware of these allegations and there is no suggestion that any of the England team is involved in any way."

Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland responds to allegations over Ashes corruption

Cricket Australia said in a statement: “The allegations raised by media outlets are of serious concern. Cricket Australia takes a zero-tolerance approach against anybody trying to bring the game into disrepute.

“Cricket Australia will co-operate fully with any ICC Anti-Corruption Unit investigation.

“CA works closely with the ICC ACU on all international fixtures played in Australia.

“Players are able to report any suspicions they have on a confidential basis and in the past there has been a strong Australian player culture to do so.”

James Sutherland, chief executive of Cricket Australia, said he had spoken by phone with ICC anti-corruption boss Alex Marshall before the start of the Test.

He said: "From my initial assessment of the material, there is no evidence, either from The Sun or via our own intelligence, to suggest the current Test Match has been corrupted.

"At this stage of the investigation, there is no indication that any players in this Test have been in contact with the alleged fixers."

Aussie skipper Steve Smith told the BBC's Test Match Special: "As far as I know, there's nothing that's been going on or anything like that.

"There's no place for that in our game."



Previous cricket scandals

Australian cricket legend Shane Warne supplied pitch information to an Indian bookmaker Credit: Allsport

CRICKET’S image has been tainted by a string of match-fixing scandals involving illegal bookmakers in recent years.

Today’s Sun exposé is the latest in a long line of controversies to drag the once hallowed gentleman’s game into the gutter:

1994: Two of the greatest names in Australian cricket – Shane Warne and Mark Waugh – were caught supplying information about pitch, weather and team selection to an Indian bookmaker.

Both were fined after receiving more than £6,000 from the bookie but escaped bans.

2000: South African test captain and cricket legend Hansie Cronje was caught match fixing for huge sums during a Delhi police probe during the ODI series against India.

After transcripts of conversations between him and a bookie were published, Cronje admitted to rigging matches and having received more than £75,000 from bookies since 1996.

He mentioned the name of Indian star Mohammad Azharuddin during inquiries and exposed a wider scandal.

Azharuddin was banned for life - but had the penalty lifted in 2012 after launching a successful career in politics.

Cronje was also banned for life and South African players Herschelle Gibbs and Henry Williams were handed two year bans. Cronje died in a plane crash in 2002.

2004: Former Kenyan captain Maurice Odumbe was banned for five years accused of benefiting from contacts with an Indian bookmaker.

Investigators said he had received £14,500 from the bookie to fix matches and was described as greedy, callous and irresponsible in a report commissioned by authorities.

2008: West Indies star Marlon Samuels was banned for two years after he was found guilty of leaking team tactics to an Indian bookie during the Windies 2007 ODI series in India. Samuels always denied the charges and eventually resumed his career.

2009: Essex county cricketer Mervyn Westfield took £ 6,000 for spot fixing and underperforming in the NatWest Pro40 series match between Durham and Essex. He became the first English cricketer to be convicted of spot fixing fraud and was jailed for four months in 2012.

Teammate Danish Kaneria was also charged with spot-fixing and accused of pressuring Westfield to accept the money and give away prescribed number of runs in his over. Kaneria was arrested but not charged and given a lifetime ban from the game.

Pakistani bookie Mazhar Majeed bribed three Pakistani stars Credit: AP:Associated Press

2010: A sting operation by the now defunct News of the World newspaper caught Pakistani bookie Mazhar Majeed bribing three Pakistani stars in a spot fixing racket.

National team captain Salman Butt and faster bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were paid bungs to bowl no-balls at predetermined times in a match against England.

Butt was banned for ten years, Asif for seven years and Amir for five before the scandal sparked a criminal fraud probe.

In November 2011, Butt was sentenced to 30 months' jail, Asif got a 12 months and Amir six months.

2012: Five Indian players taking part in the Indian Premier League were suspended over allegations of spot-fixing following a sting operation by India TV.

One player was caught on tape admitting being paid nearly £200,000 in “black money.” All five were banned from the game.

2013: Three members of the Rajasthan Royals Indian Premier League team were arrested on suspicion of spot-fixing.

Ajit Chandila, Ankeet Chavan and Sreesanth were suspended by the Indian cricket board (BCCI).The trio were aquitted in 2015.

Fourteen other men alleged to be bookies were also arrested by Delhi Police who had been tapping phone calls.

A year later the BCCI president was ordered by the Supreme Court to step down over the scandal.