Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan banned from cricket for two years

Punished by ICC for failing to report corrupt approaches, but can resume playing in 2020 with one year of ban suspended

Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan has been banned from all cricket for two years, one of them suspended. PA

Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has been banned for two years by the International Cricket Council for failing to report corrupt approaches.

In a statement, the ICC said that Shakib "has been banned from all cricket for two years, with one year of that suspended, after he accepted three charges of breaching the ICC Anti-Corruption Code."

The charges include failure to disclose to the ACU (anti-corruption unit) full details of any approaches to engage in corrupt activities in a tri-series in January 2018 and the IPL the same year.

According to the ICC, Shakib admitted to the charges and agreed the sanction "in lieu of a tribunal hearing".

However, the ICC said that "subject to him satisfying the conditions in respect of the suspended part of the sanction, he will be free to resume international cricket on October 29, 2020."

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina backed the all-rounder, saying the country's cricket board "will always be with Shakib and will help him in every way".

AFP quoted the PM as saying that "Shakib's mistake is that when he was contacted he didn't give it too much importance. He didn't inform the ICC".

It has been a tumultuous few days for Shakib. Last week, he had led a player strike demanding better pay and benefits. While the issue was eventually resolved with salaries of domestic players almost doubled, Shakib drew the ire of his board for agreeing to sign an endorsement deal with a telecom company despite being directed not to.