Pakistan bans Latif for 5 yrs over spot-fixing
Injured Mathews to miss Pak Test
Pakistan cricket’s anti-corruption tribunal Wednesday banned opener Khalid Latif for five years and fined him one million rupees ($9,489) over a spot-fixing case, the second casualty after teammate Sharjeel Khan was banned late last month.
“Latif is banned for five years and fined one million rupees after the proceedings of the case,” the threemember tribunal announced.
The 31-year-old has played five one-day internationals and 13 T20Is, the last of which was against the West Indies in Abu Dhabi in September 2016.
In August, Sharjeel was banned for five years, with two-and-a-half years suspended, for his role in the spot-fixing scandal.
Latif had been charged with breaching six clauses, including the serious offense of luring other players to take part in fixing.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) provisionally suspended Latif and Sharjeel after they found evidence of spot-fixing during a Pakistan Super League (PSL) match between Islamabad United and Peshawar Zalmi in Dubai in February.
The board said Sharjeel and Latif met an alleged bookie and struck a deal. Based on the plan, Sharjeel – an aggressive batsman who scores quickly – agreed to play two dot balls after the first over in the match.
Although Latif did not play in that game, he was later charged with luring Sharjeel into the deal and not reporting the matter to the PCB anticorruption unit.
Spot-fixing involves bets on the outcome of a particular passage of play, unlike match-fixing in which there is an attempt to prearrange the result of the match.
Both players were suspended provisionally at the time and withdrawn from the PSL.
The minimum punishment for the charges which Latif faced was a sixmonth suspension with a maximum of a life ban.
Under the PCB code players can appeal rulings before an independent arbitrator within 14 days of the decision.
Four other players – Mohammad Irfan, Shahzaib Hasan, Nasir Jamshed and Mohammad Nawaz – were also included in the investigation on multiple charges.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka’s former skipper Angelo Mathews was ruled out of the first Test against Pakistan next week due to injury, the cricket board said Wednesday.
Mathews will miss the match starting Sept 28 in Abu Dhabi due to a calf strain, the board said.
Two uncapped players have been brought into a 15-member squad, wicket-keeper batsman Sadeera Samarawickrama, 22, and 28-year-old batsman Roshen Silva.
Sri Lanka will play two Tests, five one-day internationals and three Twenty20 matches against Pakistan.
Sri Lanka squad: Dinesh Chandimal (captain), Lahiru Thirimanna (vice captain), Dimuth Karunaratne, Kaushal Silva, Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Roshen Silva, Niroshan Dickwella, Rangana Herath, Lakshan Sandakan, Dilruwan Perera, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Vishwa Fernando and Lahiru Gamage.