Mohammad Ashraful has filed an appeal to the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) disciplinary panel chief, Mohammad Abdur Rashid, for a reduction in his ban from cricket, Espncricinfo.com reports.
The Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) anti-corruption tribunal slapped an eight-year ban on him after he was found to have been involved in match and spot-fixing in the BPL 2013.
The Dhaka Gladiators managing director Shihab Chowdhury, who was banned for 10 years, has also made the appeal.
“My lawyer has sent the appeal papers to the disciplinary committee’s chief,” Ashraful said to Espncricinfo.com.
“I want to return to cricket before my eight-year ban is up. That’s why I have made the appeal.”
If Abdur Rashid decides that the ban must stay they can further appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland, according to the BCB’s anti-corruption code.
Ashraful had pleaded guilty of wrongdoing before the original investigation started, while Chowdhury was found guilty of “being party to an effort to fix” a match following the investigation.
Sri Lanka leg-spinner Kaushal Lokuarachchi along with New Zealand’s Lou Vincent was accused of failing to report suspicious bookie activity.
Six other players were discharged as not guilty by the tribunal, and both the ICC and BCB had said they were “disappointed” by the ruling.
The ICC, along with BCB, have decided to appeal the tribunal’s findings. They say that they did not take all the evidence into account and let players off without penalty when they should have been banned.
The ICC said: “In the ICC’s view, clear and compelling evidence of corruption by a number of individuals have not been taken into account properly.
“Having now had the opportunity to review the detailed decision in its entirety and taken advice on it, we believe that we have very strong grounds on which we can base our appeal.
“We do not believe that the sport would be sending the right message if it does not challenge what, in our opinion, are incorrect findings.”
Source: Bd news24
