I'm a cheat, admits disgraced Vincent
Ex-New Zealand batsman and former Hong Kong coach says he shamed his homeland after being handed a life ban for match-fixing
Disgraced former New Zealand batsman Lou Vincent on Tuesday was banned for life from cricket for match-fixing, admitting he was a cheat who had shamed the sport and his country.
"My name is Lou Vincent and I am a cheat. I have abused my position as a professional sportsman on a number of occasions by choosing to accept money through fixing," he said.
The punishment, which was confirmed by the England and Wales Cricket Board, stems from one-day matches that Vincent admitted he helped rig in English county cricket.
Speaking out. Exposing the truth. Laying bare the things I have done wrong is the only way I can find to begin to put things right
His former Sussex teammate, Naveed Arif, was also banned for life last month after admitting similar corruption offences.
The ECB said Vincent, a former Hong Kong batting coach, pleaded guilty to 18 breaches of its anti-corruption regulations.
Four charges related to a Twenty20 match between Lancashire and Durham in June 2008. The remaining 14 concerned two fixtures played in August 2011 - a Sussex v Lancashire Twenty20 and a Sussex v Kent CB40 match.
"We are extremely pleased the matter has now been brought to a satisfactory conclusion and that an individual who repeatedly sought to involve others in corrupt activity for his own personal gain has accepted that his conduct warrants a lifetime ban from cricket," said ECB chief David Collier.
International Cricket Council chief executive David Richardson welcomed the ban by saying: "The ICC has a zero-tolerance approach towards corruption and these life bans, together with the life ban recently imposed by the ECB on Naveed Arif, should send out a loud and clear message to all those who indulge in corrupt practices and think they can get away with it."