Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday suspended Hong Kong all-rounder Irfan Ahmad (of Pakistan origin) for two years and six months after he admitted breaching the ICC Anti-Corruption Code. “Irfan was charged with offences under the Code and provisionally suspended by the ICC on November 4, 2015. This followed an investigation carried out by the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit, relating in part to the activities of another individual known to the ACU and suspected of making corrupt approaches to participants,” said a spokesman for the ICC.

Irfan has played in six one-day internationals and eight Twenty20 matches for Hong Kong. Cricket has been plagued by a number of corruption issues and a 2010 spot-fixing scandal resulted in bans and jail terms for Pakistan fast bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, and former test captain Salman Butt.

The ICC said whilst Irfan was not charged with any offence involving corruption, the ACU established that he had failed to disclose to it full details of approaches or invitations to engage in corrupt conduct that had been made to him between January 2012 and January 2014. During the investigation, Irfan admitted that he was aware of his obligations under the Code and that his failure to report such approaches was a breach of the Anti-Corruption Code. Irfan’s period of ineligibility will take effect from the date of his provisional suspension and will therefore expire on May 4, 2018. Irfan has accepted the imposition of such a penalty and therefore waived his right to appeal against the decision.

“Having carefully considered the facts of the case in question, the nature of the breaches of the Code, the relevant aggravating and mitigating factors, the importance of the objectives underlying the Code, the comparable cases relating to failures to report match-fixing approaches, the need to deter others from similar wrongdoing, the need to protect the image of cricket, and the need to maintain public confidence in the sport’s approach towards fighting corruption, the ICC has determined that a period of ineligibility of two years and six months be imposed on Irfan for each of his separate breaches of the Code, with each such period of ineligibility being served concurrently,” added the ICC.

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. It is pleasing to note that the investigation upon which these charges were founded originated from information that had been disclosed to the ACU. This is a clear and welcome demonstration that participants now more and more fully realise their own responsibilities in combating this scourge on the game through prompt and diligent reporting as required by the Code, Flanagan said in a statement.