The Bangladesh Cricket Board on Tuesday said it has banned ex-national cricketer Shariful Haque for an indefinite period after an allegation made against him for spot-fixing has been substantiated.
The decision against Shariful was taken following an allegation made by former Test captain Mashrafee bin Murtaza who had alleged that he was approached by the off-spinner for spot-fixing before the start of the Bangladesh Premier League Twenty20 Tournament in February.
Before the tournament began Mashrafee had told his Dhaka Gladiators franchise that he was asked by Shariful to provide information on whether he would play in certain matches and even whether he would be wearing his sunglasses.
In return Mashrafee was promised that he would be paid 15-20 percent of the earnings from the spot betting.
The BCB immediately formed an inquiry committee, headed by a senior vice-president Mahbubul Anam, who recently submitted its findings to the Board.
‘The allegation made against the player has been substantiated,’ said BCB president AHM Mustafa Kamal at a news conference on Tuesday.
‘We have decided to ban him from all cricketing activates until further notice. We will keep him under surveillance and only if we are satisfied then his ban will be lifted,’ said Kamal.
Shariful, who played only one One-Day International against India in 1998, is the first cricketer in Bangladesh to get any kind of punishment for spot-fixing or match-fixing.
He was part of the Bangladesh squad in 1994 ICC Trophy in Kenya and he also played three first-class matches.
Shariful denied the charge against him again and said he will prove his innocence.
‘Allah is above us and I can swear on Him that I have done nothing wrong. I am confident that I will be able to prove my innocence,’ he told reporters after BCB announced the ban.
Shariful, who plays for Bangladesh Biman in Dhaka League, said he was discussing the matter with his family members before deciding further course of action.
The BCB said they are also in constant touch with the government over the Pakistani citizen who was caught on suspicion of spot-fixing during the BPL.
The BPL officials caught Pakistani Sajid Khan after he made a call to Pakistan every time a six was struck while watching the game from the VIP area above of a dressing room.
He later bailed out and left Bangladesh, but Kamal on Tuesday said the case against the Karachi resident is still on.
‘The matter is still being investigated by the police and we are in touch with them,’ said Kamal.
-With New Age input
