LAHORE: Lahore Qalandars batter Fakhar Zaman has been charged with a Level 3 offense under section 2.14 of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel for allegedly contravening section 41.3 of the playing conditions, which prohibits any action altering the condition of the ball.
“Fakhar denied the charges against him during a disciplinary hearing conducted by match referee Roshan Mahanama,” the PCB said.
“A further hearing is expected to take place within the next 48 hours, after which the match referee will issue his verdict.”
The controversy unfolded shortly before the final end of Karachi Kings’ chase, when on-field umpires examined the ball and ruled that its condition had been altered. As a result, a five-point penalty was imposed on the defensive end, reducing Karachi’s target to nine points from 14.
The incident occurred after Fakhar, Lahore captain Shaheen Shah Afridi and fast bowler Haris Rauf were involved in a brief discussion, during which Fakhar and Rauf passed the ball to each other. The umpire then approached Rauf and asked to see the ball before, after consultation with the square leg umpire, awarding the penalty and ordering the ball changed.
The penalty proved decisive as Abbas Afridi hit a four and a six to seal a four-wicket victory for Karachi with three balls to spare.
Shaheen said Lahore would examine the footage of the incident. “I don’t know about that [ball tampering]and we will discuss it. Five-point penalty… but we can’t say anything. We will see,” Shaheen said during the post-match presentation.
Reflecting on the overall performance, Shaheen maintained that his team’s batting effort was respectable, highlighting the opposition’s struggle while chasing a modest target.
“It was a good match. We wanted to fight till the last ball, and the team tried. In batting for both teams, it was the same. I think our batting was good, otherwise KK would have continued that in 15 overs,” the left-arm pacer pointed out.
Fakhar could face a one or two match ban if found guilty of ball tampering for a first offense in the PSL.
Hasan Ali fined
In a separate disciplinary development from the same match, Karachi Kings fast bowler Hasan Ali was fined 10% of his match fee for a Level 1 violation of the PCB Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel.
The leader admitted the offense and accepted the sanction.
Hasan was found guilty of violating Rule 2.5, which concerns “using language, actions or gestures that disparage or could provoke an aggressive response from a batter when ejected during a game.”
The incident took place on the last ball of Lahore Qalandars’ 19th over when Hasan dismissed Haseebullah Khan.
Lahore were restricted to 128-9 in their 20 overs after opting to bat first. Abdullah Shafique top-scored with 33 from 24 balls, while Haseebullah Khan made 28 from 30 deliveries.
In reply, Muhammad Waseem led Karachi’s chase with 38 from 37 balls, while Saad Baig and Moeen Ali contributed 19 and 18 respectively.
