DURBAN, Feb 2: Players have been told they face life bans for any dealings with bookmakers during the World Cup, the South African Sunday Times reported.

The paper said the warning had been sounded by the chief investigator of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Anti Corruption Unit (ACU), Jeff Rees.

“There has been a major educational programme to warn players and officials of how they can be compromised and the penalties for having dealings with bookmakers,” the paper quoted Rees as saying.

South Africa’s National Intelligence Agency (NIA) said on Saturday it was monitoring arrivals in the country for individuals named on an ICC list of suspects having links to cricket betting scams.—Reuters