Chris Cairns denies he is ‘Mr X’ in match fixing incident

Wellington: New Zealand great Chris Cairns on Tuesday denied he is alleged match-fixing kingpin “Player X”, instead blaming “dark forces” for placing him at the centre of an ICC investigation.

Black Caps captain Brendon McCullum and former batsman Lou Vincent have both told ICC investigators that Player X approached them to fix matches, according to leaked testimony from the pair, but the mystery cricketer has not been publicly named.

McCullum testified that he rejected Player X’s overtures in 2008, while Vincent has reportedly agreed to provide evidence about his part in a match-fixing plot in a bid to avoid prosecution.

Vincent described Player X in his testimony as “a world-famous international”, while McCullum said he was “a hero who became a friend” and had offered him up to $180,000 a match to underperform. Cairn has issued a statement denying it was him.