adminDUBAI. — The World T20 Qualifiers have been hit by a corruption scandal just days before it starts, with the captain and two senior cricketers of the host team, UAE, charged by the ICC with 13 counts of breaching their anti-corruption rules.
Mohammad Naveed, Shaiman Anwar and right-arm paceman Qadeer Ahmed have been provisionally suspended with immediate effect. Mehardeep Chhayakar, who has participated in cricket in Ajman, has also been charged with multiple breaches of the anti-corruption code.
The players have been charged with attempts to corrupt games at the World T20 qualifiers themselves, which begin tomorrow with the UAE in action.
Qadeer, the 33-year-old who has played 11 ODIs and 10 T20Is for UAE, the charges were for “failing to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches, or invitations received, to engage in conduct that would amount to Corrupt Conduct under the Code.”
This relates to the UAE tour of Zimbabwe, which the Gulf nation suffered a 0-4 whitewash in April this year, and the UAE tour of the Netherlands for a T20I series in August 2019.
The UAE powered to a 4-0 clean sweep in the Netherlands. Qadeer is being charged for “disclosing inside information to Mehar Chhayakar in August 2019 in circumstances where he knew or should have known that the information might be used for betting purposes.” He is also accused of “failing or refusing to cooperate with an investigation being carried out by the ACU in relation to possible Corrupt Conduct under the Code”; and “obstructing or delaying an ACU investigation including by concealing information that may be relevant to that investigation.”
Naveed had been stood down as captain of the UAE and removed from the squad earlier this week, replaced by Ahmed Raza, the 31-year-old left-arm spinner.
Both Naveed and Anwar were charged with “contriving, or being party to an agreement or effort to fix or contrive or otherwise influence improperly, the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect of matches in the upcoming ICC World T20 Qualifiers 2019.”
The four players now have 14 days from October 16, to respond to the charges. — Cricinfo.
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