Westfield was handed a five-year ban four years ago for agreeing to concede a set amount of runs in a match against Durham in return for a payment of £6,000 ($9,000/€8,000).

He was prohibited from playing at a professional level and has been turning out for club team Frinton since 2014.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), the governing body for the sport in the nations, has today agreed to allow him to appear for county second XIs or minor counties teams, the tier below first-class level in the country.

Westfield, 27, played just seven times for Essex before being given his ban though the ECB did reduce his suspension from club cricket to two years after he agreed to participate in a programme on anti-corruption in the sport run by the Professional Cricketers Association, the representative body of past and present first-class cricketers in England and Wales.

The ECB’s special dispensation to allow him to play professional cricket comes as a result of Westfield’s education work with the PCA as he has been helping teach young cricketers of the dangers of spot-fixing, which remains a key issue for the sport.

He will still be unable to turn out for a first-class side until next year.

“I'm really happy to play minor counties and second XI again - if anyone gives me the opportunity to do it,” he told BBC Sport.

“I'm probably a little bit rusty.

“My body didn't used to ache as much as it does now, but I'm training hard and trying to get back my fitness.

“This summer I'll probably get the odd bit of banter, but I'll just have to distance it and get on, just focus on what I'm trying to do, score runs and take wickets.

“I've done wrong but I'm just trying to fix it now and obviously I'm happy I'm back playing cricket.”

The news follows Pakistan trio Salman Butt, the former captain of his national side, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir all returning to the game last month after each served bans for their role in a spot-fixing scandal in 2010 where no-balls were deliberately bowled in a Test match against England.

Butt was given the longest sentence as he was jailed for 30 months, though he was let out after eight, and Asif served half of a one-year term.

Butt and Asif have both only been allowed to come back to domestic cricket in the Asian country, while Amir has been brought back into the international fold.

This has prompted contentious debate and caused outrage from some members of the team as one-day captain Azhar Ali and batsman Mohammad Hafeez boycotted a recent training camp in protest at his inclusion.

Ali then offered to give up the one-day captaincy, which was rejected by the Pakistan Cricket Board.