The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) came down hard on Fakhar Zaman, suspending the Lahore Qalandars batter over ball-tampering charges during Sunday’s Pakistan Super League (PSL) clash against Karachi Kings at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
The 35-year-old was charged by match referee Roshan Mahanama with a Level 3 offence under Article 2.14 of the PSL Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel. He was found guilty of breaching Article 41.3 of the PSL playing conditions, which prohibits any action that alters the condition of the ball.
However, Fakhar denied all charges during the hearing, which stemmed from an incident just before the final over of Karachi’s innings, when they required 14 runs to win. He was seen in discussion with fast bowler Haris Rauf and captain Shaheen Afridi before the over, with footage allegedly showing him altering the ball’s condition.
Umpire Faisal Afridi, suspecting foul play, asked for the ball to be inspected and was later seen in a lengthy discussion with his fellow on-field official. The match officials subsequently penalised Lahore Qalandars five runs and replaced the ball. The decision reduced the equation to nine runs in the final over, which Karachi chased down successfully.
Following Fakhar’s denial, the match referee took 48 hours to arrive at a verdict. Captain Shaheen Afridi, team director Sameen Rana, and team manager Farooq Anwar were present during the proceedings.
On Tuesday, the PCB confirmed in a statement that Fakhar had been suspended for two PSL matches after being found guilty of the Level 3 offence.
He will now miss Lahore’s upcoming fixtures against Multan Sultans on April 3 at home and Islamabad United on April 9 in Karachi.
