‘Indisciplined’ Shakib slapped with six-month suspension

Sport360 staff 05:29 08/07/2014
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  • Punished: Shakib al Hasan is a central figure for Bangladesh but the board are unhappy with his behaviour.

    Bangladesh cricket authorities yes­terday suspended star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan for six months be­cause of his “severe attitude problem”, the cricket board chief said.

    Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan said the board had unanimously decided to suspend the 27-year-old from “all kinds of competitive cricket” for the next six months, ruling him out of Bangladesh’s tour of the West Indies in August.

    He will also be barred from play­ing in any cricket leagues abroad until December next year, the presi­dent said.

    “He has a severe attitude problem, which is unprecedented in the history of Bangladesh cricket,” Hassan said. “We think that his be­haviour is such that it’s directly im­pacting the team.”

    Shakib reportedly threatened to quit international cricket after he was called back to Dhaka before a planned appearance in the Carib­bean Premier League (CPL) Twen­ty20 tournament.

    Hassan said Shakib was travelling to the Caribbean without any clear­ance from the BCB, and had also “misbehaved” with coach Chandika Hathurusinghe. He gave no further details.

    “This morning he called me. He thought that he had the NOC (no objection certificate). He did not have any. He admitted that he mis­behaved with the coach. He apolo­gised for the misbehaviour.

    “Shakib is our role model. He is like an ambassador,” Hassan added.

    But he said the player did not care about others, and “I think we cannot tolerate it anymore.”

    Hassan said the player had a his­tory of disciplinary problems, and was banned for three matches in February for an indecent gesture to local fans.

    The ban kept him out of key Asia Cup matches.

    Last month he beat up a spectator after the latter reportedly used abu­sive language against his wife during a Bangladesh-India match.

    “We want to give a clear message – if it is repeated, he might be banned for life. There will be no compromise when it comes to discipline,” Hassan said of the latest apparent incident.

    On Sunday, Shakib returned to Dhaka and denied he had made any threat to quit.

    “I want to play cricket for another ten years,” he said.

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