We must stamp on fixing attempts

Strauss was talking at Lord's where, after sitting out two months of international cricket, he will return to his job as England captain today in the first Test against Bangladesh.

After a day of revelations about the ongoing efforts of illegal bookmakers to infiltrate the game the England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed they have received two formal reports from players who had been contacted by bookies.

The ECB work closely with the Professional Cricketers' Association and the ICC's Anti-Corruption Unit in encouraging players to come forward,

Earlier this season Danish Kaneria and Mervyn Westfield of Essex were arrested, and later bailed, as part of an investigation into spot-betting and the Daily Telegraph yesterday carried claims from an unnamed domestic player that he had been asked to "name his price" for throwing a game.

The individual concerned reported the incident to the authorities but there are worries that fear of the organised crime syndicates believed to be behind such approaches could be stifling others from coming forward.

On the international scene, Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan used his pre-Test press conference at Lord's to reveal he had once been contacted by a suspicious would-be 'sponsor' – an offer he duly reported to the ACU.

The PCA has pledged to make it easier and safer to report approaches and Strauss has called on all professionals to play their part.

"If it is happening, it needs to be stamped out straight away," said Strauss.

"There's no place for it in any form of cricket and, certainly in domestic cricket, we've got a duty as players to make sure that if we hear of it, or are approached by someone, we come forward and report it straight away.

"It's the only way of ironing it out. For players to be tempted by taking money is ludicrous in my mind. The authorities are doing everything they can, but there is a huge responsibility on the players to make sure it doesn't take hold and spread.

"There are a lot of measures in place to make sure it doesn't happen. Let's hope they continue and be stepped up if necessary.

"We've got to be responsible as players to make sure it's not going on in our dressing room and if it is, to report it.

"We've got to make sure all 11 of us are doing our best and if one isn't then we shouldn't feel any loyalty to him."

The ECB release, which hailed the success of the current measures in yielding two formal reports, went on to outline the severe nature of the punishment likely to be dealt to any offenders.

The statement ended with the warning: "The board takes this opportunity to remind cricketers and others falling under its jurisdiction that any unlawful activity of this kind entered into by anyone will result in disciplinary action, irrespective of any sanctions imposed by the law of the land, and will inevitably be dealt with severely, constituting as it would, a grave slur on the integrity of the game."

Strauss will lead a team containing at least one debutant today with Eoin Morgan – on his home ground and as an extra batsman – more likely to get the nod ahead of Yorkshire pace bowler Ajmal Shahzad.

Bangladesh hopes rose on the eve of the game after captain Shakib Al Hasan and opening batsman Tamim Iqbal were both declared fit. Shakib has endured a bizarre tour so far, unable to communicate face to face with his team for fear of infecting them with chickenpox, from which he has just recovered.

"I've been kept away almost for two weeks. It was very hard, staying a whole day in your room," he said. "It was weird, and a bit frustrating when you're not going with your team-mates for dinner or a practice session. You're missing everything. It was very hard."

England (from): AJ Strauss (captain), AN Cook, KP Pietersen, IJL Trott, IR Bell, EJG Morgan, MJ Prior (wkt), TT Bresnan, GP Swann, JM Anderson, ST Finn, A Shahzad.

Bangladesh (from): S Al Hasan (captain), T Iqbal, I Kayes, J Islam, M Ashraful, J Siddique, M Rahim (wkt), Mahmudullah, N Islam, A Razzak, S Hossain, R Hossain, S Islam, M Alam, R Islam.

Umpires: B Bowden (NZ) and A De Silva (SL)

Third umpire: R Illingworth

Match referee: A Hurst (Aus).