Former Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful and former New Zealand batsman Lou Vincent were handed lengthy bans from all forms of cricket yesterday for their roles in a Twenty20 match-fixing scandal.
A special tribunal set up to investigate claims of corruption in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) announced that Ashraful was banned for eight years and ordered him to pay a fine of one million taka (Dh47,500) after he admitted match-fixing.
Vincent was banned for three years for failing to report approaches to fix matches. A third former international, Sri Lanka's Kaushal Lokuarachchi, received an 18-month ban.
Shihab Jishan Chowdhury, an owner of the league's reigning champions Dhaka Gladiators, who employed Ashraful, was banned for 10 years and fined two million taka for being party to an effort to fix a match.
Shakil Kasem, one of the three-member tribunal that handed down the sentences, said the bans would be effective worldwide. "The charges against the four were brought in accordance with the ICC's (International Cricket Council) anti-corruption code," Kasem said.
The ban on Ashraful, 29, is backdated to May last year when the one-time prodigy admitted having helped fix matches in the tournament, which has been tainted by scandal since its inception.
"I have committed wrongdoing and that's why I received the punishment," Ashraful said again yesterday.
"It's natural. There's no shortcut in life."
He is yet to decide on an appeal against the sentence.
Ashraful played 61 Tests, 177 one-day internationals and 23 T20 international matches for Bangladesh. He said he would return to the game one-day after completing the ban.
"I'll be back to the field even for a day for all these people who supported me," he said.
Vincent, who played for the Khulna Royals in last year's BPL, is at the centre of other match-fixing allegations in India and England.
He has represented the Black Caps in 23 Tests and 109 one-day internationals, although he has not played for his country since 2007. Lokuarachchi, 32, played four Tests and 21 one-dayers for Sri Lanka.
The bans were announced after a copy of a report by the tribunal was leaked, including details of how the ICC's anti-corruption unit let one of the matches go ahead even though investigators knew it was fixed.
The report said Dhaka Gladiators coach Ian Pont alerted the anti-corruption unit to tell them that he had been approached by one of the team's owners, but was instructed to let the match happen regardless.
In a related development, Vincent's partner in fixing matches in England, Naveed Arif was banned for life by the English and Wales Cricket Board.
The former Sussex and Pakistan A bowler pleaded guilty to six breaches of the English Cricket Board's anti-corruption code in connection with a 40-over fixture between Sussex and Kent in August 2011.
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Company%20profile
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Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
Overview
What: The Arab Women’s Sports Tournament is a biennial multisport event exclusively for Arab women athletes.
When: From Sunday, February 2, to Wednesday, February 12.
Where: At 13 different centres across Sharjah.
Disciplines: Athletics, archery, basketball, fencing, Karate, table tennis, shooting (rifle and pistol), show jumping and volleyball.
Participating countries: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Qatar and UAE.
'The Batman'
Stars:Robert Pattinson
Director:Matt Reeves
Rating: 5/5
Kathryn Hawkes of House of Hawkes on being a good guest (because we’ve all had bad ones)
- Arrive with a thank you gift, or make sure you have one for your host by the time you leave.
- Offer to buy groceries, cook them a meal or take your hosts out for dinner.
- Help out around the house.
- Entertain yourself so that your hosts don’t feel that they constantly need to.
- Leave no trace of your stay – if you’ve borrowed a book, return it to where you found it.
- Offer to strip the bed before you go.
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
Indian construction workers stranded in Ajman with unpaid dues
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
Company%20profile
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The Details
Kabir Singh
Produced by: Cinestaan Studios, T-Series
Directed by: Sandeep Reddy Vanga
Starring: Shahid Kapoor, Kiara Advani, Suresh Oberoi, Soham Majumdar, Arjun Pahwa
Rating: 2.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
Joker: Folie a Deux
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
Story%20behind%20the%20UAE%20flag
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CABINET%20OF%20CURIOSITIES%20EPISODE%201%3A%20LOT%2036
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Chef Nobu's advice for eating sushi
“One mistake people always make is adding extra wasabi. There is no need for this, because it should already be there between the rice and the fish.
“When eating nigiri, you must dip the fish – not the rice – in soy sauce, otherwise the rice will collapse. Also, don’t use too much soy sauce or it will make you thirsty. For sushi rolls, dip a little of the rice-covered roll lightly in soy sauce and eat in one bite.
“Chopsticks are acceptable, but really, I recommend using your fingers for sushi. Do use chopsticks for sashimi, though.
“The ginger should be eaten separately as a palette cleanser and used to clear the mouth when switching between different pieces of fish.”
'Nightmare Alley'
Director:Guillermo del Toro
Stars:Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara
Rating: 3/5
The%20specs
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
