THEY are the three no-balls that will be recorded in the statistics books forever - and will be remembered for shaking cricket to its core.
Millions of fans who watched Pakistan bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif send down the trio of deliveries over two days' play at Lord's, had no idea they were bowled as part of a match-rigging scam.
Incredibly, during live coverage, respected TV and radio pundits exclaimed to worldwide audiences how bad every one of the faked no-balls looked - little knowing they were ordered by money-grabbing fixer Mazhar Majeed, who just a day earlier had collected £150,000 from undercover News of the World reporters.
And it all played out like clockwork exactly as Majeed promised it would. He claimed the players had demanded we pay the cash as our entry ticket into an existing shady gambling syndicate based in India.
In return he revealed solid details of the three no-balls he'd planned for the Lord's Test. . .
MAJEED: "There's no risk, there's no signal. . . these three are definitely happening. They've all been organised, okay? So, the first ball of the third over of the innings, yeah.
"Asif and Amir are going to be bowling. Amir is to bowl the first over (meaning he will also bowl the third), yeah?
"Okay? Then the tenth, the last ball. . . sixth ball of the tenth over."
REPORTER: "The tenth over. Who's bowling it?"
MAJEED: "Asif will be bowling it."
Majeed then explained that the third no-ball would come in the first over that teen wonder boy Amir got to deliver to an England right-hander, after one of the opening two left-handers had been dismissed.
Just to convince us Amir was onside Majeed telephoned the young star at his hotel. "Are you sleeping f***er?" he asked crudely. Amir confirmed that's what he was trying to do.
"Ok, sleep," said Majeed. "We've spoken about everything before anyway. Ok, don't mind. You sleep'."
But when Amir prepared for his day's work at the 4th Test on Thursday morning, he was certainly awake to what was expected of him.
Pakistan captain Salman Butt strolled out to meet England skipper Andrew Strauss in the middle of the ground shortly before the weather-delayed toss at 1.10pm on the opening day of the test.
Pakistan won the toss and elected to put England in to bat.
Butt had his customary huddle with his team but bizarrely did not even bother to inspect the recently uncovered wicket like his opposite number Strauss. As predicted Butt put Amir and Asif on to open the bowling.
And, as promised, on the FIRST BALL of the THIRD OVER to England opening batsman Alastair Cook Amir overstepped the white line marking his bowling crease by a huge margin.
Umpire Billy Bowden immediately raised his arm to signal the no-ball at 1.56pm.
Pakistan's 18-year-old rising star had sealed cricket's shame on the pitch once illuminated by legends including WG Grace, Ian Botham and Don Bradman.
But the sly player brazenly tried to hide the truth, raking the spikes of his boots across the line and asking for sawdust to be put down as he falsely blamed the no-ball on loose footing.
Bemused Sky commentator Ian Botham exclaimed: "No-ball. Because of the one-dayers, you don't see that too often with the bowlers who play two forms of the game. They've got into the discipline of keeping behind that front line."
The BBC online commentary read: "Dirty great no-ball from Amir, that was fully two feet over."
Millions of fans who watched Pakistan bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif send down the trio of deliveries over two days' play at Lord's, had no idea they were bowled as part of a match-rigging scam.
Incredibly, during live coverage, respected TV and radio pundits exclaimed to worldwide audiences how bad every one of the faked no-balls looked - little knowing they were ordered by money-grabbing fixer Mazhar Majeed, who just a day earlier had collected £150,000 from undercover News of the World reporters.
And it all played out like clockwork exactly as Majeed promised it would. He claimed the players had demanded we pay the cash as our entry ticket into an existing shady gambling syndicate based in India.
In return he revealed solid details of the three no-balls he'd planned for the Lord's Test. . .
MAJEED: "There's no risk, there's no signal. . . these three are definitely happening. They've all been organised, okay? So, the first ball of the third over of the innings, yeah.
"Asif and Amir are going to be bowling. Amir is to bowl the first over (meaning he will also bowl the third), yeah?
"Okay? Then the tenth, the last ball. . . sixth ball of the tenth over."
REPORTER: "The tenth over. Who's bowling it?"
MAJEED: "Asif will be bowling it."
Majeed then explained that the third no-ball would come in the first over that teen wonder boy Amir got to deliver to an England right-hander, after one of the opening two left-handers had been dismissed.
Just to convince us Amir was onside Majeed telephoned the young star at his hotel. "Are you sleeping f***er?" he asked crudely. Amir confirmed that's what he was trying to do.
"Ok, sleep," said Majeed. "We've spoken about everything before anyway. Ok, don't mind. You sleep'."
But when Amir prepared for his day's work at the 4th Test on Thursday morning, he was certainly awake to what was expected of him.
Pakistan captain Salman Butt strolled out to meet England skipper Andrew Strauss in the middle of the ground shortly before the weather-delayed toss at 1.10pm on the opening day of the test.
Pakistan won the toss and elected to put England in to bat.
Butt had his customary huddle with his team but bizarrely did not even bother to inspect the recently uncovered wicket like his opposite number Strauss. As predicted Butt put Amir and Asif on to open the bowling.
And, as promised, on the FIRST BALL of the THIRD OVER to England opening batsman Alastair Cook Amir overstepped the white line marking his bowling crease by a huge margin.
Umpire Billy Bowden immediately raised his arm to signal the no-ball at 1.56pm.
Pakistan's 18-year-old rising star had sealed cricket's shame on the pitch once illuminated by legends including WG Grace, Ian Botham and Don Bradman.
But the sly player brazenly tried to hide the truth, raking the spikes of his boots across the line and asking for sawdust to be put down as he falsely blamed the no-ball on loose footing.
Bemused Sky commentator Ian Botham exclaimed: "No-ball. Because of the one-dayers, you don't see that too often with the bowlers who play two forms of the game. They've got into the discipline of keeping behind that front line."
The BBC online commentary read: "Dirty great no-ball from Amir, that was fully two feet over."
__________________
Lucky is the man who is the first love of a woman,
but luckier is the woman who is the last love of a man.
Lucky is the man who is the first love of a woman,
but luckier is the woman who is the last love of a man.
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