Umar Akmal's ban reduced from 3 to 1.5 years by PCB, can resume cricket from Aug 2021

Controversial Pakistan cricketer Umar Akmal got a relief on Wednesday as his ban was halved by an independent adjudicator. The player, who already was on the receiving end of a three-year ban by the PCB, saw it reduce to half, i.e. a period of 18 months. The latest ruling means that Umar Akmal will now be suspended effectively from February 2020 till August 2021.

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The reason behind Umar Akmal ban 

Umar Akmal was given a ban of three years on April 27 by the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Disciplinary Panel, Justice (retd) Fazal-e-Miran Chauhan, after he was found guilty of breaching Article 2.4.4 of the PCB Anti-Corruption Code in two separate incidents. The concerned Article of the PCB Anti-Corruption Code refers to "Failing to disclose to the PCB Vigilance and Security Department (without unnecessary delay) full details of any approaches or invitations received by the Participant to engage in Corrupt Conduct under this Anti-Corruption Code".

After being found guilty of the violation, Umar Akmal was provisionally suspended on February 17, with the player later being charged by PCB on March 20, following which the Umar Akmal ban case was handed over to the PCB Disciplinary Panel. Ever since the ban was issued, the player didn’t contest the charges before an Anti-Corruption Tribunal and was issued the lengthy ban after failing to show remorse.

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Umar Akmal ban halved

The decision to reduce Umar Akmal’s ban came to light after retired Former Supreme Court judge Justice (retd) Faqir Muhammad Khokhar, who was serving as an independent adjudicator, had earlier reserved his judgement after listening to the arguments on Monday. The ban reduction will serve as a boost for the 30-year-old, who had decided to appeal his three-year ban on May 19.

Umar Akmal’s appeal was based on the argument that players found guilty of similar infractions were given punishments that were less harsh. Mohammad Irfan was banned for six months in 2017 while Mohammad Nawaz was given a two-month-ban. The latest decision means that Umar Akmal’s suspension, which started in February ahead of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), will now stay in effect until August 2021.

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"We will file an appeal": Umar Akmal after ban reduction

Umar Akmal was present at the PCB's High-Performance centre when the decision on his ban was read out. While speaking to the media after the verdict, the player revealed that he will be filing a further appeal to reduce the sentence against the remaining term of the ban. Umar Akmal’s lawyer, on the other hand, said that the decision to reduce Umar Akmal’s ban was good and was what they had been expecting.

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Image Courtesy: AP