Afghan coach Noor Mohammad Lalai has been banned for five years by the ACB due to his illegal approaches on a national cricketer.
In the previous season of the Shpageeza Cricket League (SCL), it was reported that coach Noor Mohammad Lalai illegally approached a national player to fix some matches in the league. After having proved that he breachedthe anti-corruption code, Lalai was then handed by the Afghanistan Cricket Board with a five-year ban from all forms of cricket.
As per ACB’s senior anti-corruption manager Sayed Anwar Shah Quraishi, ‘This is a very disappointing and serious offence where a domestic level junior coach is involved in the corruption of a high-profile domestic game in SCL 2019. The coach, as an agent tried to get one of the national team player to engage in corruption of spot-fixing of few matches in SCL 2019. Luckily, he failed to do so as he was reported’.
‘I would like to place on record my grateful appreciation and thanks to national player X who displayed true bravery and professionalism from the moment he reported this approach. He recognized it for what it was, rejected it and reported it. He then supported our investigation and subsequent tribunal’, Quraishi added.
Quraishi also stated how Lalai’s offence had been very disappointing as a domestic-level junior coach became involved in the corruption of a high-profile domestic game in last year’s season of the SCL.
Lalai has been found guilty of ‘fixing or contriving in any way or otherwise influencing improperly or being a party to any agreement or effort to fix’ which was the scope of Article 2.1.1 of the ACB’s anti-corruption code. With what he did, he had also breached Articles 2.1.4, 2.3.3, and 2.4.4.
Aside from being a domestic assistant coach, Lalai also works as a full-time coach in the Hampalana Private Cricket Academy. To further understand how the sport is played, check out Betwala.
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