MELBOURNE, (Reuters) – Any players found guilty of  being involved in match-fixing or any other form of illegality  related to gambling in cricket should be banned for life,  former Australian spinner Shane Warne has said.

A British newspaper made allegations last weekend that  Pakistan bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were paid to  deliberately bowl no-balls during their fourth test against  England at Lord’s, which finished on Sunday.

“If it is true and they have been found (guilty of)  match-fixing and throwing games and spot betting with the  no-balls and stuff, if that’s the case they should be thrown  out,” Warne told reporters in Melbourne yesterday.

“If it’s fixed by players, they should be banned for life.  Anyone who’s involved should be thrown out.

“The ICC have to flex their muscles and just go after  Pakistan.” Warne, who was fined for admitting he had taken  money from an Indian bookmaker for providing pitch and weather  information in 1994, said he had been shocked by the latest  allegations, especially since the International Cricket Council  had instituted an anti-corruption unit.

“I thought that the game was clean now with the  anti-corruption people there,” Warne added.

“(But) if you look back over the incidents they’ve had in  the past, you’d have to say no, they haven’t really flexed  their muscles. So you’d hope that at this stage they can flex  their muscles and show that they do run the game.”