File photo: Umpire Nadir Shah (third from right) will be one of the on-field umpires for one of the first matches in the Dhaka Premier League
Umpire Nadir Shah will return to competitive cricket on Friday, two months after the BCB lifted its 10-year ban on him. Shah had been banned on charges of corruption alleged by a TV sting operation in October 2012. He had filed a plea of mercy three months later, which prompted plenty of discussion among the board’s policy makers, but it took nearly three years for them to revoke his ban.
Shah, who became eligible to work in domestic matches in Bangladesh from February 2016, will be one of the on-field umpires on the first day of the Dhaka Premier League, when Abahani take on Kalabagan Krira Chakra in Fatullah.
“I am very excited to be back,” Shah told ESPNcricinfo. “But it is very important to perform well. I have already done two practice matches recently and I feel I am ready to go. The time when I was banned was quite hard for me as people would ask me questions. Now everything is very good and exciting.”
In 2012, India TV reporters had claimed to be part of a sports management company and promised umpires from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan assignments in T20 leagues all over the world. The cricket boards of all three countries launched an investigation soon after the sting was broadcast.
Shah had umpired in a domestic T20 match a year after his suspension, believing it had been lifted. But a couple of days later, board president Nazmul Hassan said the ban remained in place and Shah had officiated as a result of a “miscommunication”.
Mohammad Isam is ESPNcricinfo’s Bangladesh correspondent. @isam84
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo