LONDON (Reuters) ? Pakistan cricketers Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were jailed on Thursday for their roles in a spot-fixing scandal which the judge said had damaged the integrity of the game in the eyes of the world.
Former captain Butt was sentenced to 30 months, while Asif was given one year and fellow pace bowler Amir six months as the sporting world was given a strong message that corruption would be punished by much more than fines and suspensions.
The trio were part of a gambling-inspired plot to bowl no-balls at pre-arranged times during a test match against England at London's Lord's Cricket Ground in August 2010.
"The image and integrity of what was once a game but is now a business is damaged in the eyes of all, including the many youngsters who regarded you as heroes and would have given their eye teeth to play at the levels and with the skills that you had," judge Jeremy Cooke told the courtroom.
"Now, whenever people look back on a surprising event in a game or a surprising result, or whenever in the future there are surprising events or results, followers of the game who have paid good money to watch it ... will be left to wonder whether there has been fixing and whether what they have been watching is a genuine contest between bat and ball."
Sports agent Mazhar Majeed, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cheat and conspiracy to making corrupt payments at a pre-trial hearing, was jailed for two years and eight months at London's Southwark Crown Court.
Majeed, who implicated another unnamed Pakistan player in court, was caught in a sting by former UK newspaper the News Of the World which broke the spot-fixing story.
'SHAMEFUL DAY'
The cricketers, already banned from playing by the International Cricket Council for a minimum of five years, showed no reaction as the sentences were handed out amid strong words from the judge who said they had tainted a game known for its fairness.
"'It's not cricket' was an adage," Cooke said.
"It is the insidious effect of your actions on professional cricket and the followers of it that make the offences so serious."
Butt, 27, and Asif, 28, were found guilty on Tuesday of taking bribes while 19-year-old Amir admitted his part in the scam before the trial started and had also offered a heartfelt apology during the sentence hearing.
The case has prompted calls back home in Pakistan for the game to be cleaned up.
"It is a shameful day for Pakistan cricket today," the country's former captain Imran Khan told Geo News.
While Butt's father Zulfiqar said his son -- who faces a long wait to meet the baby his wife gave birth to earlier this week -- had been made a scapegoat, others said the players had deserved their punishments.
"These convictions will hopefully serve as a deterrent to others in the future because cricket should not be allowed to be corrupted by anyone," former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif told Reuters.
Some thought the punishments had not been harsh enough with corruption suspected in Pakistani cricket for years.
"I would have liked to see the (sentences) longer to be honest," former England pace bowler Darren Gough said.
Butt, Asif and Majeed are expected to begin their sentences at Wandsworth prison in south London, while Amir is due to be sent to a young offenders' institute in west London.
Lawyers for Butt and Amir have said they will be appealing the sentences.
Pakistan cricket was already suffering from the team having to play home matches away from the country because of security concerns there.
The Pakistan cricket board (PCB) distanced itself from the convicted players, saying the trio had let the country down.
"It is a sad day for Pakistan cricket that these players instead of having pride in playing for their country chose to disappoint their supporters and let their nation down," PCB official Nadeem Sarwar said.
"These players chose to disappoint their supporters, damage the image of their country and bring the noble game of cricket into disrepute. There is little sympathy in Pakistan."
The PCB also reiterated its support for all anti-corruption measures taken by the International Cricket Council and member boards and said it would be recommending to the government to draft laws against corruption and fixing in cricket.
(Writing by Sonia Oxley in Manchester; Editing by Mark Meadows; To query or comment on this story email: sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)
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