Afghanistan’s Shahzad fined for playing in Pakistan

ACB chairman Mashal says wicketkeeper-batsman violated code of conduct

Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) on the weekend fined wicketkeeper-batsman Muhammad Shahzad AUS$5,000 for playing in a local tournament in Pakistan.

The ACB then issued a firm ultimatum to the 30-year-old to return to the country within a month or risk losing his contract.

Shahzad, who lives in Peshawar, a city near the Afghan border participated in a local tournament, but the ACB claimed that he didn’t take an No-Objection Certificate (NOC), which is against the contract.

"(Players) are not allowed to travel to any country without permission," ACB chairman Atif Mashal told ESPN. "Those players who are living on foreign land are given a month to move back to Afghanistan with their families, otherwise the cricket board will terminate their contracts.”

"ACB has made a strict rule about player discipline and given them a one-month notice to adhere firmly with the policy,” he added. "All players and employees should be based in Afghanistan and they are not allowed to play in any foreign country without ACB's approval."

While commenting on Shahzad’s case, Mashal said he violated the contract. “He played in a club-level tournament without NOC (no-objection certificate) which is against the ACB code of conduct".

The case comes after the cricketing relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan cricket boards became stringent when the former issued an offensive statement against the later, blaming them for May 31 blast in Kabul last year.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) then demanded an apology from the ACB, to which the latter had replied that “we do not see the need for an apology”.