Hong Kong cricketer Irfan Ahmed banned for 30 months for failing to report approaches to fix matches
ICC says the player has accepted the decision and will not appeal, while HKCA vows to continue to be vigilant on match-fixing
Hong Kong cricketer Irfan Ahmed was on Wednesday suspended for two and a half years by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for failing to report requests to fix matches.
The 26-year-old all-rounder was in January charged with the offence that the ICC said took place several times between January 2012 and January 2014 following an investigation by its Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU).
The ICC said Ahmed had accepted the penalty and decided against appealing the decision. The 30-month ban is backdated to the start of when the probe was launched in January, which means Ahmed will be eligible to play again after May 4, 2018.
This penalty should act as a reminder to all participants of the need to comply with their obligations under the Code at all times
The ACU noted that Ahmed was not charged with any corruption offence and he did not act on any of the approaches. It also said the Hong Kong Cricket Association (HKCA) co-operated fully with its investigation.
Sir Ronnie Flanagan, chairman of the ACU, said: “This penalty should act as a reminder to all participants of the need to comply with their obligations under the Code at all times, and in particular the requirement to report corrupt approaches to the ACU without any delay.”
Ahmed had been charged under article 2.4.2 under the ICC anti-corruption code, namely: “Failing to disclose to the ACU (without undue delay) full details of any approaches or invitations received by the participant to engage in conduct that would amount to a breach of the anti-corruption code.”