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Cronje's June 22 testimony

MS BATOHI: And did you also tell him that the team needed to score less than 250 runs and that he could received R70 000, as he has it in his statement for that.

MR CRONJE: Sanjay wasn't really particular as to exactly what he wanted us to do. He just wanted us to play badly in that first innings. I said I will try and sass out some of the players. I wasn't particularly keen to get involved in loosing a test match or losing a - helping him with any information in the test matches. I really committed myself to saying that I will try and help him in one of the One-day matches. I didn't want to really get involved in test matches. So I wasn't really trying to push Mr Strydom or anything in that manner. To answer your question, I don't think I went into any detail with Sanjay as to exactly what he wanted us to do. I just felt out Pieter Strydom and it came back that he didn't want to, and I left it at that. I wasn't really particularly interested.

MS BATOHI: Well, I'll just put my question to you again. My question is that Mr Strydom testified that he had asked you - or he informed you that the South African team was to score no more than 250 runs and that he would receive 70 000 for that. Do you confirm that that was the offer that you made to him?

MR CRONJE: If that's what Mr Strydom says, then I will go with that, ja.

MS BATOHI: And his testimony was that on the following day you - well, some time later you walked past him and in passing to him said, 'How about 140?', and he said, 'no way', and you both laughed. Do you confirm that?

MR CRONJE: Yeah, that's 100% correct. I tried to pass the whole incident as a joke and just made a joke with him about it, ja.

COMMISSIONER: Do you accept or agree that that's what you said to him about the 140?

MR CRONJE: Correct.

MS BATOHI: And is that because you were still trying to entice him to go along with this plan?

MR CRONJE: No, it's because I wanted him to think that I was just joking with him.

MS BATOHI: Well, he certainly didn't think you were joking on the following day. That was in his testimony.

MR CRONJE: If you were to ask this question of Mr Strydom the day after I spoke to him he would have told you that it was a joke. The reason why he's now thinking it's serious is because of all the revelations that happened. I'm sure about that.

MS BATOHI: You state in paragraph 46 that after speaking to Strydom - well, at the time of speaking to him you were already, to use your words, 'racked with guilt, and his remarks about doing his best for South Africa shamed you and in no way indicated that he was interested in receiving money'. My question is that if you were really guilty about this and ashamed of you, then why do you the next day nudge him and say, 'How about 140'?

MR CRONJE: Once again I say to you that I was trying to pass the whole incident as a joke. I didn't want Mr Strydom to think badly of me.

MS BATOHI: And then at paragraph 47 you talk about your approach to Kallis, Boucher and Klusener. Now we've heard from them about how this happened. Can you just tell this Commission how that happened?

MR CRONJE: Sanjay wanted to know if I could speak to some of the other players in the team. At that stage I told Sanjay that I had already spoken to Gibbs, Strydom, Boje, Williams - no, Williams wasn't on the tour yet, Gibbs, Strydom, Boje. I told him that I had spoken to Boucher. He said that he wanted more players in the team to play along, and I said that I will see if I can speak to Klusener, Kallis and Boucher. He actually wanted me to speak to those players. So I walked into their room, I said that there's a bloke who's willing to pay money for playing badly in the test match. They said they're not interested, and that's where we left it.

MS BATOHI: Now Strydom, Boucher, Klusener and Kallis, if they hadn't testified about what had happened concerning these approaches, would you have mentioned that to this Commission?

MR CRONJE: It's a difficult one to answer, Ms Batohi, because it was semi-joke, semi-serious. If you want to, I was testing them out, if that's what you're trying to say, ja.

MS BATOHI: No. My question to you is if they hadn't admitted to this Commission or testified that these approaches had been made, would you have told the Commission about that?

MR CRONJE: I probably wouldn't have mentioned it because since 1994 it's something that the guys have joked about, spoke about. Especially after the meeting in '96, the guys did joke and do talk about it, and laugh about these matters.

COMMISSIONER: Are there any other similar matters that have been joked and laughed about that you haven't told me?

MR CRONJE: Not that falls within the terms of reference, Commissioner.

COMMISSIONER: Not that fall within the terms of reference.

MR CRONJE: It's very hard for me to tell you exactly what players talk about. I don't ask you personal questions as to what you talk about over lunch time, and I think it's very harsh to ask me to reveal that. I can promise you from my side that it's not anything to do with money or bribery or related matters, whether it goes back to 1900's or the 1800', Mr Commissioner.

COMMISSIONER: Well, then you've misunderstood me because that's all I'm interested in is discussions of a similar nature, jokingly or otherwise, relating to cricket match fixing or related matters other than those that you have told me about. I'm not interested in personal discussions, obviously not. So I will rephrase my question ...(intervention)

MR CRONJE: I misunderstood you. I'm sorry.

COMMISSIONER: Oh. What's your answer?

MR CRONJE: No, there's nothing that the players joke about that falls in that, ja.

COMMISSIONER: Perhaps I'm not putting myself clearly. You've mentioned this incident, at first with Pieter Strydom and then with Kallis and the others and you've told me that - well, you've said semi-serious, but in a sense also joking. And then you said in answer to Ms Batohi that you probably would not have mentioned this incident if it hadn't come out in the evidence of some of the others. Now I've asked you whether there are other similar incidents which were treated semi-serious or even totally as a joke, which you haven't told me about.

MR CRONJE: I understand your question now, and there's no other incidents. Sorry about that.

MS BATOHI: Mr Cronjé, the only person that's not been mentioned in - well, that's been mentioned in the publicised transcripts, that has denied any approach by you is Mr Boje. What surprises me is that all the other players that have admitted approaches you say you did

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