Sipu Jha
The ball tampering incident in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) has taken Pakistan cricket by storm as the Lahore Qalandars player Fakhar Zaman has been charged with a Level 3 offence under Article 2.14 of the Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel for allegedly breaching Article 41.3 of the playing conditions, which prohibits any action that alters the condition of the ball.Zaman denied the allegation during a disciplinary hearing held by match referee Roshan Mahanama. Another hearing is scheduled within the next 48 hours, after which the referee will announce a decision.
The incident occurred during the second innings of the match on Sunday.The charge relates to an incident just before the final over of the Karachi Kings’ innings, when they needed 14 runs to win.Zaman was seen in discussion with Haris Rauf and Lahore Qalandars captain Shaheen Shah Afridi before the over. Shortly thereafter, umpire Faisal Afridi requested the ball and, after inspecting it with his colleague, determined that its condition had been altered.The penalty reduced the target to nine runs off the final over instead of 14, shifting the momentum in favour of the Kings. Abbas Afridi capitalised on the situation by striking consecutive boundaries on the second and third deliveries, guiding the 2020 champions to a thrilling four-wicket victory.Qalandars captain Shaheen Shah Afridi expressed disappointment over the decision but admitted he was unaware of the specific allegation at the time.
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“I don’t know about this [ball tampering], and we’ll discuss. Five runs penalty…but we can’t say anything. We will see,” said Shaheen at the post-match presentation.If the charge is upheld, Zaman and possibly the Lahore Qalandars could face further action.Also See: CSK vs RR Live Score
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