The Crown Prosecution Service confirmed on Friday that three Pakistan Test cricketers are facing corruption charges, following an investigation into their actions during last August's Fourth Test against England at Lord's.
Mohammad Amir, Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif stand accused of "spot-fixing" offences - after the Pakistan captain, Butt, and his pacemen, Amir and Asif, were allegedly involved in deliberately bowling no-balls - while their agent, Mazhar Majeed, is being charged with conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments and conspiracy to cheat.
The players were suspended by the ICC in September and cricket's governing body, which conducted its own investigation, will present their findings on Saturday. It is expected they will issue life bans to Butt and Asif, although the future is less clear for Amir who, at just 17, is one of his country's brightest talents in the sport.
Simon Clements, the head of the CPS's Special Crime Division, said the charges "relate to allegations that Mr Majeed accepted money from a third party to arrange for the players to bowl no-balls on 26 and 27 August, 2010.
"We are satisfied there is sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction and it is in the public interest to prosecute."
The players have denied the charges, but the television evidence is damning and their protestations of innocence have cut little ice, either in Pakistan or throughout the wider world.
The likelihood is, that with the World Cup starting in Asia later this month, cricket will want to be seen to be clamping down heavily on anybody suspected of bending the rules for monetary gain.
But now, the players not only risk losing their careers, they are in danger of losing their liberty as well.