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http://www.espncricinfo.com/england/...ry/549087.html

Mervyn Westfield, the former Essex bowler, has become the first English cricketer to be convicted of spot-fixing after pleading guilty at the Old Bailey to criminal charges arising from a spot-fixing investigation by Essex police. He will be sentenced on February 10.

Westfield admitted he accepted £6,000 to concede 12 runs in his first over of Essex's Pro40 tie against Durham at Chester-le-Street in September 2009. Judge Anthony Morris warned Westfield he could face a jail sentence up to a maximum of seven years.

Westfield pleaded guilty to accepting or obtaining corrupt payments under the 1906 Corruption Act. A separate charge of assisting another person to cheat at gambling was ordered to lie on file.

Westfield conceded 60 runs from seven overs, bowling four wides and two no balls, after agreeing to concede a set number of runs in return for payment. The match was televised live and available in India, the centre of cricket's illegal gambling industry.