A UK club cricketer, Rizwan Javed received a 17-and-a-half-year ban from all cricket due to his participation in match-fixing attempts during the 2021 Abu Dhabi T10 League. Authorities enforced the ban on September 19, 2023, as Javed failed to address charges related to his involvement in the league.
Javed was among eight players and officials charged by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on behalf of the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) in September last year. Bangladesh all-rounder Nasir Hossain received charges and is currently serving a two-year ban.
Javed faced charges under various articles of the Anti-Corruption Code, including attempting to fix matches in the Abu Dhabi T10 2021 on three separate occasions, offering rewards to induce corrupt conduct, and failing to disclose full details of approaches received to engage in corrupt conduct.
He faced additional charges for failing or refusing, without compelling justification, to cooperate with any investigation. Javed, by not responding to the charges, was deemed guilty of the offenses and waived his right to a hearing.
The ICC’s investigation involved reviewing evidence, including communications and interactions between Javed and other individuals, as well as examining the context of the matches and the teams involved.
The ICC’s General Manager of Integrity, Alex Marshall, oversaw the investigation and decided to ban Javed for 17-and-a-half years.
“Rizwan Javed faces a substantial cricket ban due to multiple and significant efforts to corrupt professional players. The penalty aims to deter other individuals attempting to manipulate cricket at any level, emphasizing that any such endeavors will be severely addressed, ” Alex Marshall, said in an ICC statement. The Abu Dhabi T10 League was approved by the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) and was launched in 2017.
The ICC’s decision to ban Javed for such a lengthy period was intended to send a strong message to other potential corrupters and to demonstrate the ICC’s commitment to maintaining the integrity of the sport