he spot fixing scandal, which has derailed the sixth edition of the Indian Premier League, will destroy more high profile careers in the coming weeks as police confirm links through interrogation. It is reliably learnt that a leading India batsman is under scrutiny of the Delhi police. This 23-year-old batsman from Mumbai also represents Rajasthan Royals and was overlooked for the Champions Trophy in England.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India, which is trying to sound holier than thou under intense public pressure, seems to have been as culpable as the bookies. The BCCI's Anti Corruption Unit (ACU), which was set up in 2012, has not acted with any seriousness. A typical case was when the spot fixing incident reared up in IPL 5 in 2012 in which five players — Shulabh Srivastava, Amit Yadav, Abhinav Bali, T.P. Sudhindra and Mohnish Mishra — were let off with a mere ban, instead of pursuing a criminal complaint, which could have expanded the scope of the investigation and netted bigger fish.

The BCCI could have used that chance to send a clear message across. Instead, it deliberately evaded action and encouraged the bookies to believe that they had a free run. This would have continued to be true if the Delhi police had not acted.

Former cricketer and MP Kirti Azad said that the BCCI should have handed over the case of the five players involved in spot-fixing in IPL 5 to the police: "I had suggested to them (the BCCI) that they should transfer the case to the police for further investigation instead of carrying out the probe themselves. But they turned it down and now we all know what has happened."

Sources revealed to this newspaper that the Delhi Police was very close to naming this Mumbai player but then decided against doing that at the last minute. His phone records and "purported" links with bookies are being investigated. An update on this player is expected in the coming week.

This newspaper has also come to know that the after-match IPL parties were the favoured venue for meetings between bookies, the middlemen and players who they thought would cooperate. As an IPL player, who preferred to remain anonymous, told this newspaper, "These parties serve as the perfect platform for the bookies to come close to the players. They (bookies) try to gain the confidence of the players before they make their next move. They go to the extent of giving expensive gifts like designer watches, which the players generally accept," said the player.

Bookies would befriend vulnerable players, particularly from the second string, including new recruits to the franchises or Ranji Trophy players. The next step was to locate a "senior" player close to the target, who could serve as both mentor and protector.

"To carry out spot fixing, the bookies need the assistance of a senior player. That senior player need not necessarily be the captain; he can be a bowler who gets to bowl his quota of overs. So somebody like Sreesanth came in handy — he is a bowler. The beauty of the whole operation is that the senior player, in this case Sreesanth, does not need to come into direct contact with the bookie. Sreesanth's friend Jiju was in touch with the bookie. In this way, the bookie ensures that the senior player has no clue to his identity in the event that the player is arrested," said the player.

The IPL player said that in certain cases the bookies also send escort girls to hook these senior players. "There have been many instances when these bookies would send very costly escorts and even arrange accommodation for these players in expensive hotels. Once the player accepts the accommodation and the escort from the bookie, one can be fairly certain that the player has agreed to do some fixing. I know of a lot of players who were offered escorts and five-star hotel stays. But almost all of them refused," said the player.

"The careful — and most are careful — avoid taking even the hint of a favour from unknown people, or anyone who cannot be fully trusted. In Sreesanth's case, it was his implicit faith in his friend Jiju that led to his arrest. I think he was indiscreet apart from being greedy," the player said.