Corruption struck Pakistan cricket once again on Friday after two players – Khalid Latif and Sharjeel Khan, playing in the Pakistan Super League – were provisionally suspended by the Pakistan Cricket Board for being involved in match fixing.
The PCB said that they are currently investigating an international syndicate, which is said to be attempting to corrupt the PSL. The players have been suspended as a part of the same investigation.
Sharjeel Khan was cheaply dismissed by Hasan Ali in the first match of PSL. He got out LBW for one run due to a loose shot, while batting for defending champions Islamabad United against Peshawar Zalmi on Thursday.
However, Peshawar Zalmi, who also plays for Islamabad United, didn’t play a single match in this season of PSL.
The Quint takes a look at who these players are.
Sharjeel Khan
.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&fmt=webp&width=720)
Sharjeel Khan was one of the young players to watch out for in the Pakistan side, when he broke into the international scene in December 2013.
The opening batsman scored a fifty in his ODI debut against Sri Lanka and notched his first T20I fifty in his third match, which was also versus the islanders.
However, in August 2014, the left-hand batsman was dropped from the ODI and T20 side due to lack of form.
After showing his mettle in domestic competitions, Sharjeel made a quiet comeback to the T20 side in the Asia Cup last year.
Post the World T20, the 27-year-old made a blistering comeback to the ODI side with an innings of 152 runs off 86 balls against Ireland in August 2016.
Since then, he has been a regular member of the ODI and T20 side and also made his Test debut against Australia in January this year.
Khalid Latif
Khalid Latif has been opening the batting for Pakistan in T20Is with Sharjeel Khan in the past four matches for the country.
The 31-year-old, who made his ODI and T20I debut against Zimbabwe in January and December 2008 respectively, led Pakistan to a U-19 World Cup victory in 2004.
The right-hand batsman played his last ODI against Australia in 2010 and was dropped from the T20I side in 2012.
Then, Latif made a comeback to the T20 side during the World T20 and in his last five matches, he has recorded impressive scores of 46 (Australia), 59* (England), 34* (West Indies), 40 (West Indies) and 21 (West Indies).
He is yet to make his Test debut.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)