ICC bans Bangladesh's star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan for two years

In a move that has taken the cricketing fraternity in Bangladesh by shock, star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has been banned by the ICC for two years, with a year of that suspended. The popular cricketer stands at the receiving end of the apex body's decision after he failed to report approaches from bookies.

As per the ICC, Shakib Al Hasan accepted three charges of breaching the ICC Anti-Corruption Code. The charges include Hasan's failures to disclose the details of approaches to engage in Corrupt Code in several instances.

The charges are as follows:

1. Article 2.4.4 – Failure to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations he received to engage in Corrupt Conduct - in relation to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe Tri-Series in January 2018 and / or the 2018 IPL

2. Article 2.4.4 – Failure to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations he received to engage in Corrupt Conduct - in relation to the second approach in respect of the Tri-Series in January 2018

3. Article 2.4.4 – Failure to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations he received to engage in Corrupt Conduct - in relation to an IPL 2018 match between Sunrisers Hyderabad v Kings XI Punjab on 26 April 2018.

Hasan, who is arguably the most-renowned cricketer from Bangladesh, will be allowed to resume playing cricket from 29 October 2020. "I am obviously extremely sad to have been banned from the game I love, but I completely accept my sanction for not reporting the approaches. The ICC ACU is reliant on players to play a central part in the fight against corruption and I didn't do my duty in this instance," the 32-year-old said.

Stating that he wants cricket to be a corruption-free sport, the Bangladeshi cricketer expressed willingness to work with the ICC ACU team to make sure that young players don't repeat the mistake committed by him.

Shakib Al Hasan has represented Bangladesh in 338 international games thus far. Accounting for 11752 runs and 562 wickets across formats, the cricketer is regarded as one of the finest all-rounders of modern-day cricket.

The ban comes as a massive blow to Bangladesh cricket, given their upcoming tour to India and the T20I World Cup in 2020.