LONDON: ICC boss Haroon Lorgat said on Friday the betting scam allegations involving three Pakistan players had the potential to be the worst corruption case in cricket since that of South Africa’s Hansie Cronje.

But International Cricket Council chief executive Lorgat, himself a South African, insisted the suspension of the three players did not represent the “tip of an iceberg”.

Lorgat, speaking at a news conference at Lord’s here on Friday, said: “In terms of corruption in the sport, this must rank as the next worst since the Hansie Cronje case.”

A decade ago, former South Africa captain Cronje, who died in a plane crash in 2002, was revealed to have accepted money from bookmakers in a bid to influence the course of games as well as trying to corrupt his team-mates.

Lorgat, who insisted the ICC had not, to his knowledge, “buried” fixing cases involving past players, insisted ignorance would not be a defence for any of the trio, even the 18-year-old Aamer.

He added they would have all received briefings from the ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) about the dangers of match-fixing, some as many as “three or four times”.

ACSU head Ronnie Flanagan denied the fact players had been banned on the back of a press report represented a “failure” for his organisation.

“Absolutely not,” Flanagan, sat alongside Lorgat, insisted.

“If the charges are proven, I congratulate the News of the World on what it’s done but it (sting operations) is not something the ICC want us to engage in. We can’t be 100 percent fool-proof.” He added the ACSU had “prevented” many instances of possible corruption.

“The conclusion that we have come to is that there is a really arguable case to answer,” the former Northern Ireland police chief explained.

Pakistan’s High Commissioner to Britain, Wajid Shamsul Hasan, said Friday the ICC had “no business” to suspend the players while the police investigation was ongoing.

But Lorgat insisted the ICC was not singling out Pakistan, saying it was trying to help the country remain fully involved in world cricket despite the fact it has become a no-go area for the international game since last year’s armed attack on Sri Lanka’s team bus in Lahore.

“I can assure you there is absolutely no truth there is a conspiracy against Pakistan cricket.”

Meanwhile Flanagan reiterated the ACSU had, as yet, no evidence that January’s Test between Australia and Pakistan had been “fixed” after Australia overturned a huge first innings deficit to complete a remarkable win.

“Our view is that it was a dysfunctional tour, things went on that were not in the spirit of the game but we have no evidence they were for financial gain.” However, he added: “The ACSU continuously looks at information we receive.”

There have been concerns the vast gap between the earnings of Pakistan players and their counterparts in wealthier nations made them particularly vulnerable to underhand approaches.