PRETORIA, Oct 17: Disgraced former South African captain Hansie Cronje failed to overturn a life ban from cricket in court on Wednesday.

The Pretoria High Court ruled that the ban, imposed after Cronje admitted last year that he had accepted money from bookmakers during his captaincy, should stand, but said he could take part in certain coaching and media activities.

Cronje, who also offered money to two team mates to under-perform in a one-day international, argued he had not been given a fair hearing before the ban and that it prevented him from earning a living.

Cronje’s downfall came in April last year after India police investigating match-fixing taped him talking to underground bookmakers.

Cronje, a born-again Christian, denied the charges at first before saying he had allowed “Satan and the world to dictate terms to me”.

Team mates Herschelle Gibbs and Henry Williams served six-month bans from international cricket after admitting they had considered an offer from Cronje to play badly in a one-dayer.

Cronje told a government commission set up to investigate the scandal that he had accepted about $130,000 from bookmakers over a four-year period in return for information and influencing the course of matches although he denied rigging results.

His sacking was part of a worldwide match-fixing scandal that rocked the sport. Two other former national captains, Mohammad Azharuddin of India and Salim Malik of Pakistan, were also banned for life.

The International Cricket Council had said it believed match-fixing was continuing in the sport.

Cronje, 32, initially cut his ties with cricket, saying he would never play again.

Recently, however, he has become increasing vocal in wanting to renew his links with the sport, at first talking of his desire to coach underprivileged children and recently suggesting he could become South Africa’s coach.

It has been widely speculated that he could also try to find employment as a cricket commentator.

Cronje, a powerful right-hand batsman and useful medium-pacer, played 68 tests, averaging 36.41, as well as 188 one-day internationals. He became South Africa’s captain at the age of 25, helping to forge a side currently ranked second in the world behind Australia.

Meanwhile, South African captain Shaun Pollock bemoaned the loss to cricket of Cronje.

“For him, it’s sad,” Pollock said. “In the years to come he does have something to offer cricket with all his experience.

“It is unfortunate, from his perspective, that he is not permitted to pursue a career in the game. It is a loss (to cricket), but I suppose it was a loss when it was discovered what he did.”

Another of Cronje’s former team mates, Fanie de Villiers, questioned the UCB’s motives.

“There are probably underlying motives we don’t know about, bad vibes between Hansie and the UCB from beforehand,” De Villiers said. “Perhaps he became too powerful as captain and upset a few people, and now they want to stun him into the ground.”

The president of the Free State Cricket Union, Charlie Robinson, declined to comment on the grounds that “it’s a UCB thing and we’ll await their instruction”.

Cricket’s ruling body, the ICC, was delighted by the ruling.

“It’s bitterly disappointing that cheats turn to legal procedures in an attempt to get their own way,” ICC president Malcolm Gray said. “It’s extremely pleasing that in this case justice has been seen to be done.”—Reuters