Two South African Test cricketers told a government inquiry yesterday they had been offered bribes totalling £35,000 from former captain Hansie Cronje to perform badly.

Fast bowler Henry Williams told the inquiry into match-fixing allegations, that he had accepted an offer of £15,000 from Cronje to bowl poorly in a match against India in March.

All-rounder Pieter Strydom said Cronje had offered him up to £20,000 if the team scored fewer than 250 runs in a Test against India in February. Strydom said he had declined the offer.

Also yesterday, opener Herschelle Gibbs, who admitted on Thursday to accepting a bribe offer from Cronje, was dropped from the national team for a tour of Sri Lanka. Cronje is expected to appear before the commission next week.

Williams said he had accepted the offer made by Cronje in exchange for conceding at least 50 runs in his 10 overs during the last one-day international against India in March.

He did not complete his second over because of a shoulder injury and was not paid.

Williams said Cronje made the offer to him and team-mate Gibbs in their hotel room in Nagpur before the match.