Shahadat Hossain faces yearlong ban after teammate assault

Hossain is alleged to have hit Arafat Sunny following a dispute over the shining of the ball. Players are then said to have stepped in to diffuse the situation

Former Bangladesh seamer Shahadat Hossain faces a possible yearlong ban after he was involved in a physical confrontation with a teammate during a National Cricket League domestic match.

Hossain is alleged to have hit Arafat Sunny following a dispute over the shining of the ball. Players are then said to have stepped in to diffuse the situation.

As a result of what was deemed a Level Four offence, Hossain was effectively sent off for the remainder of the match, leaving Dhaka Division with just 10 players.

A one-year suspension is in the upper echelons of sanctions available to the NCL’s technical committee, which will decide on the bowler’s punishment. He could also be fined 50,000 BDT (£455).

Match referee Akhtar Ahmed told Cricbuzz: “The match referee has no authority to punish Shahadat for what he has done. His offense falls under Level Four offence.

“This is a big offence because it is not something like a bad gesture or an abuse. He kicked his teammates. Now it has been sent to BCB (Bangladesh Cricket Board). The board will decide whether to punish him after the evidence and verification of the incident.”

It is the latest episode of controversy to involve the 31-year-old. In 2015, he was arrested with his wife to face charges of torturing a housemaid, though he was acquitted the following year after it was decided that the prosecution had failed to prove its case.

He has not represented Bangladesh since 2015, when he played the last of his 38 Tests against Pakistan. He has also featured in 51 ODIs and six T20Is.

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