Zaidi, Sanghavi and Choudhary banned under Anti-Corruption Code

Batting coach Ashar Zaidi and team co-owners Parag Sanghavi and Krishan Kumar Choudhary have all been handed bans after admitting to various breaches of the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) Anti-Corruption Code for Participants of the T10 League (the ‘Code’).

Zaidi has been banned from all cricket for five years while Sanghavi and Choudhary have both been banned for two years after they each admitted two offences under the Code. In each case, the last 12 months of each period of ineligibility is suspended.

The charges all relate to the 2021 Abu Dhabi T10 Cricket League.

Zaidi, Sanghavi and Choudhary were among eight players and officials charged by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in September 2023 on behalf of the ECB as the Designated Anti-Corruption Official (DACO) for the purposes of the ECB’s Code for the tournament.

The admitted charges are:

Ashar Zaidi (batting coach):

Article 2.1.4 – Directly or indirectly soliciting, inducing, enticing, instructing, persuading, encouraging or intentionally facilitating any Participant to breach Article 2.1 (Corruption).

Article 2.4.4 - Failing to disclose to the DACO full details of any approaches or invitations received to engage in Corrupt Conduct under the Code.

Parag Sanghvi (co-owner of a team):

Article 2.2.1 - Placing bets on the results, progress, conduct or other aspect of International and Domestic Matches.

Article 2.4.6 – Failing or refusing, without compelling justification, to cooperate with any investigation carried out by the DACO in relation to possible Corrupt Conduct under the Code.

Krishan Kumar Chaudhary (co-owner of a team):

Article 2.4.5 – Failing to disclose to the DACO (without unnecessary delay) full details of any incident, fact, or matter that comes to the attention of a Participant that may evidence Corrupt Conduct under the Anti-Corruption Code by another Participant.

Article 2.4.6 – Failing or refusing, without compelling justification, to cooperate with any investigation carried out by the DACO in relation to possible Corrupt Conduct under the Code.

The bans are backdated to 19 September 2023, the date they were provisionally suspended.

The earlier media release on the charges is available here.

The agreed sanction decisions are available here.

Please note that with the application of the suspended part of the sanction, Mr Sanghavi and Mr Choudhary will be re-eligible to participate in cricket from 19 September 2024 while Mr Zaidi will be re-eligible to participate in cricket from 19 September 2027.