Shahzaib Hasan has represented Pakistan in three ODIs and 10 Twenty20 Internationals
Image courtesy of: Zimbio
Last year’s Pakistan Super League (PSL) spot-fixing scandal has claimed another victim as Pakistan opener Shahzaib Hasan has been banned for a year and fined Rs 1 million after being found guilty of breaching the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) anti-corruption code.
Shahzaib was found guilty of two counts of breaching Clause 2.4.4, which relates to failing to report an approach, and one count of breaching Clause 2.4.5, which relates to failing to report an incident in which a player is aware that it would breach the anti-corruption code.
However, the 28-year-old was spared a longer ban since he was found not guilty of breaching Clause 2.1.4, which relates to “directly or indirectly soliciting, inducing, enticing, instructing, persuading, encouraging or intentionally facilitating any participant to breach any of the foregoing provisions of this Article 2.1.”
It is understood that Shahzaib did not report an approach from two bookmakers named Sajid and Robbie. He also failed to notify the PCB of the approach to members of the national team. Furthermore, he did not tell the PCB’s anti-corruption unit about Babar Azam and Sharjeel Khan being approached during the fifth ODI against Australia in Adelaide in January last year.
With Shahzaib having been provisionally suspended by the PCB since March 18 last year, his ban will end on March 17, 2018.
“His ban may end on March 17, but remember that according to the anti-corruption code, you have to go through a rehabilitation process,” PCB legal advisor Taffazul Rizvi was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. “The first step towards beginning rehabilitation is the acceptance of guilt. If he does not accept that he was guilty, then his rehabilitation process cannot begin.”
Shahzaib is the sixth player to be banned in relation to the PSL scandal. The others who suffered the same fate are Sharjeel Khan, Khalid Latif, Mohammad Irfan, Mohammad Nawaz and Nasir Jamshed.
However, the PCB has hit Jamshed with further charges, which could lengthen his ban.