Shakib al Hasan ban: How was the cricketer caught by the ICC?

One of Bangladesh's best-ever players, all-rounder Shakib al Hasan, has been banned from international cricket for two years out of which he will remain suspended for one year. These developments took place after the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) charged Shakib with not reporting the approaches made on him by bookies. Shakib has been essentially ruled out of next year's T20 World Cup in Australia.

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Three instances of breaching the Code of Conduct

Shakib was charged by the ICC on three counts of breaching the ICC Anti-Corruption Code. 

• Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe Tri-series, January 2018
• A second approach for the same series as above
• Indian Premier League 2018 Match 25 - Sunrisers Hyderabad vs. Kings XI Punjab

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According to the ICC, Shakib was approached by an Indian bookmaker named Deepak Aggarwal through a mutual friend during the Bangladesh Premier League at the end of 2017. From that moment, the ICC kept a close tab on Shakib and its ACSU had two investigations with the player during the first half of 2018. In one of the tri-series matches at home against Sri Lanka, Shakib won the Man of the Match and was congratulated by the bookie. However, his message 'do we work in this or I wait til the IPL' made the ICC more alert as the Bangladesh all-rounder had already passed on 'insider information' to the bookie, who was masquerading as a businessman friend of his.

Another message from Aggarwal, 'Bro anything in this series?' four days later seemed to have worsened Shakib's case as he did not bother to report any of these approaches to the ICC.

During the IPL 2018, Shakib revealed that he had messaged Aggarwal that he wanted to meet him 'first' before discussing monetary transactions but felt that he was 'dodgy' to deal with. On April 26, which was the day when Shakib's team Sunrisers Hyderabad was playing Kings XI Punjab, the Bangladeshi cricketer had deleted several of the bookie's messages, which rose further suspicion.

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Heavy shock for Bangladesh

Shakib's ban from cricket is a heavy shock for Bangladesh cricket as the all-rounder is one of the most talented cricketers the country has produced. Before being handed the ban, he was serving as the country's Test and T20I captain. Shakib has been a vital part of the Bangladeshi lineup, having taken the number one all-rounder spot on the ICC rankings multiple times.

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