PCB charges Akmal for breaching anti-corruption code

The Pakistan Cricket Board has charged middle-order batsman Umar Akmal for breaching its anti-corruption code. Akmal was suspended last month hours before the start of the Pakistan Super League Twenty20 tournament when he was due to compete for Quetta Gladiators at Karachi.

The code stipulates that players have to disclose to the PCB’s vigilance and security department full details of any approaches or invitations they have received.

The PCB says Akmal was served the notice of charge last Tuesday and has until March 31 to respond in writing.

If found guilty, Akmal could be banned from all forms of cricket for anywhere between six months and life.

Akmal was sent home from England in 2017 when he failed a fitness test before the Champions Trophy that Pakistan won.

The 29-year-old Akmal made a century in his debut test against New Zealand in 2009, but has played only 16 tests, scoring 1,003 runs. His last test match was against Zimbabwe in 2011.

In white-ball cricket, Akmal has played 121 ODIs and 84 Twenty20 matches. He was recalled last year for the three-match T20 series against Sri Lanka in Lahore, but didn't score in the first two games and was dropped.