Pakistan cricketer Sharjeel gets five-year ban for spot-fixing

'The charges have been proven. He was given minimum punishment with no fines imposed.'

Batsman Sharjeel Khan has been banned for five years by his country's cricket board (PCB) for his involvement in a spot-fixing scandal in the Pakistan Super League, local media reported on Wednesday.

The 28-year-old will not be able to play domestic or international cricket for half the sentence and will be kept under observation for its duration.

"Sharjeel is banned for five years, which has two-and-a-half year suspended, after the proceedings of the case," Asghat Haider, who headed the three-member PCB tribunal that sentenced him, told local media.

Sharjeel, who made his international debut for Pakistan in 2013, has played one Test, 25 one-day internationals and 15 Twenty20 internationals for his country.

"The charges have been proven. He was given minimum punishment with no fines imposed. This decision has shown that we had strong proofs against him," Taffazul Rizvi, PCB legal advisor, told Pakistan's Geo TV News.

Sharjeel and fellow Islamabad United player Khalid Latif were provisionally suspended and sent home from the domestic Twenty20 competition in February after an investigation by the board's anti-corruption unit.

At least two other players have been implicated in the scandal while another, fast bowler Mohammad Irfan, was fined and given a one-year ban in March this year.

Image: Sharjeel Khan

Photograph: Paul Childs/Reuters