Former Lions batsman Jean Symes will appear in the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Pretoria this week, according to Rapport.
Symes is one of seven match-fixers suspended by Cricket South Africa in 2016 – and will likely plead not guilty to charges under the Prevention and Combatting of Corrupt Activities Act of 2004.
Symes will be the second of the seven players to be criminally charged. The first was former Proteas and Lions batsman Gulam Bodi, who was sentenced to five years in prison in 2019 before being paroled in 2020.
The others found guilty by CSA were former franchise seamers Pumelela Matshikwe, Ethy Mbhalati and Lonwabo Tsotsobe, wicketkeeper-batsman Thami Tsolekile and batsman Alviro Petersen.
Mbhalati, Tsotsobe and Tsolekile were going to appear t this week’s hearings of the Social Justice and Transformation Project. That, however, has been postponed.
“The process is on track. However, it has become clear that there needs to be clarity regarding the process of any public hearings,” read a brief statement from transformation ombud, advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza SC.
“Failure to do so may compromise the legitimacy of any process embarked upon. My office will therefore be taking legal counsel as regards a proper process for any such hearings. I, therefore, welcome the postponement to ensure such procedural fairness.”
Symes played South African representative cricket at several levels, including South African Schools, South Africa Under-19 and South Africa Emerging Players.
He also represented Scotland at List A level – and was approached by former Sydney Sixers captain Brad Haddin about a stint in Australia’s Big Bash League. That, however, never came to fruition.