Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan slapped with a two-year suspension

Bangladesh cricket hasn’t been short of problems over the last few days. Shakib Al Hasan, the ace all-rounder of the cricket team, has been in the thick of things for quite some time. He was mostly in change when the Tigers’ players conducted the strike against the country’s cricket board. Recently, Shakib along with Bangladesh cricket have been jolted with a massive blow.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has slapped him with a suspension of two years. The ban has been meted out after he received an offer from a bookie for match-fixing as many as three times, which he didn’t report to the ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU).

It’s a backdated suspension and the same will apply for the next one year. The veteran will be free to resume international cricket on October 29, 2020 provided he satisfies the conditions in respect of the suspended part of the sanction. The southpaw has accepted the three charges of breaching the ICC’s code.

The charges are as follows: 

Article 2.4.4 – Failure to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations he received to engage in Corrupt Conduct – in relation to the Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe Tri-Series in January 2018 and / or the 2018 IPL.

Article 2.4.4 – Failure to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations he received to engage in Corrupt Conduct – in relation to a second approach in respect of the Tri-Series in January 2018.

Article 2.4.4 – Failure to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations he received to engage in Corrupt Conduct – in relation to an IPL 2018 match between Sunrisers Hyderabad v Kings XI Punjab on 26 April 2018.

A distraught Shakib Al Hasan

“I am obviously extremely sad to have been banned from the game I love, but I completely accept my sanction for not reporting the approaches. The ICC ACU is reliant on players to play a central part in the fight against corruption and I didn’t do my duty in this instance,” Shakib was quoted as saying in a media release.

“Like the majority of players and fans around the world, I want cricket to be a corruption free sport and I am looking forward to working with the ICC ACU team to support their education programme and ensure young players don’t make the same mistake I did,” he added.