All 'Hansie' tapes not given to Batohi

South Africa's chief prosecutor in the King Commission inquiry into cricket match-fixing, Shamila Batohi, has charged that she has not been provided with all the tapes of conversation between Hansie Cronje and an Indian bookmaker, and the commission might "seek a court order to secure them".

Batohi said that her recent trip to India was meant to secure all the tape recordings but she obtained only authenticated transcripts of the conversations.

"I have been handed part of the transcripts which have been authenticated. But if we are going to get full cooperation from the Indians, then they must hand over all portions of the tapes relevant to the inquiry. Otherwise we will have to seek a court order to secure them," Batohi said in an interview published in Durban.

Batohi said that at first the Indian police were anxious and suspicious in dealing with her team but once the two parties won each other's confidence, vital information was shared.

Declining to divulge details about any lead in the investigation, the prosecutor said, "I cannot comment whether there were other players or bookmakers implicated on the collective tapes, but when I returned, I consulted with a lawyer, Peter Whelan who represents present and former players of the South African cricket team."

The commission will resume its investigation early Novemeber.

Meanwhile, Cronje has announced through his lawyer that he will challenge the life ban imposed on him.

Mail Cricket Editor