The latest cricket corruption scandal could crush the credibility of the sport in Pakistan, say former Pakistani players.

Ball-tampering claims, doping scandals, security problems and intrigues in the past few years have contributed to a volatile cricket culture without severely denting the popularity of the game among Pakistanis.

But a British police investigation of allegations that players took bribes to fix incidents during the fourth Test against England last week look set to stretch that loyalty to its limits.

"We have one of the worst cricket systems in place," said former Test captain Aamir Sohail, "yet we survive in international cricket because of the everlasting support of our passionate fans."

Sohail and former captain Javed Miandad fear the latest scandal may be the last straw.

"I think even the people have had enough of this indiscipline in the team," Miandad said. "I think this time the board has to show it means business."

Political analyst Kamran Khan blames political interference. The president of the country is the patron of the Pakistan Cricket Board and has authority to appoint the board chairman.

"In no country does the president or prime minister appoint someone to head a sports body," he said. "In Pakistan merit is ignored when appointing people to run the board, and they remain unaccountable.

"That is the root cause of the problems we see in our team."

The board banned and fined seven players for indiscipline and misconduct on the Australian tour in March but political clout and public and government pressure saw five return after three months.

Imran Khan, who led Pakistan to a World Cup triumph in 1992, believes the problems of Pakistani society are reflected in cricket. "When the players see corrupt politicians in governance, when they see people pardoned in financial scams, they think we can also get away with this," he said.