UAE cricket player banned 14 years for fixing matches at GT20 tournament in Brampton among others.
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October 17, 2022
A United Arab Emirates cricket player has been banned from all cricket games for 14 years after being found guilty of seven charges relating to match-fixing in an international series in April 2019 and a GT20 franchise tournament in Brampton.
The International Cricket Council released a statement on October 12th announcing the ban on Mehardeep Chhayakar after a hearing in the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Tribunal.
Chhavakar has denied all the charges against him.
Chhavakar was found guilty of two counts of contriving to influence a player to fix a result by deliberately underperforming, two counts of soliciting or inducing a player to breach the anti-corruption regulations, two counts of failing or refusing to cooperate with an investigation and a count of obstructing or delaying an investigation in relation to matches in the UAE’s series against Zimbabwe in April 2019 and the Global T20 tournament in Canada later that year.
The second annual Global T20 Canada tournament took place in Brampton, in July and August of 2019 over a two and a half week period. The event showcases top cricketers from around the world, playing alongside Canadian talent.
Global T20 Canada is Canada’s first major T20 cricket tournament, making its official debut on the international stage last year to a worldwide television audience of more than 50 million, according to Harper.
The tournament launched in 2018 in King City with six teams named after Canadian cities, including Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Edmonton, Winnipeg. Over the course of the tournament, the city will host players from over 40 countries playing more than 22 matches.
“The charges for which he has now received a lengthy ban are further examples of his continuing efforts to corrupt and damage our sport,” Alex Marshal, general manager of the ICC’s integrity unit, said in the public statement. “We will be relentless in pursuing and disrupting the people who try to corrupt cricket. With a ban of 14 years, the tribunal has sent a clear message to anyone intending to corrupt our game.”
