Bangladesh’s Shohely Akhter Becomes First Woman Cricketer Banned by ICC for Corruption

In a historic yet unfortunate incident, Bangladesh’s Shohely Akhter has become the first woman cricketer to be banned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for corruption charges. The 36-year-old cricketer was found guilty of attempting to fix matches during the 2023 Women’s T20 World Cup and has been handed a five-year ban from all forms of cricket.

The Corruption Charges and ICC’s Ban

The ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) found that Shohely Akhter violated five provisions of the ICC Anti-Corruption Code. She admitted to the charges and accepted the five-year ban, which will take effect from February 10, 2025.

Shohely was charged with breaching Articles 2.1.1, 2.1.3, 2.1.4, 2.4.4, and 2.4.7 of the ICC Anti-Corruption Code, which cover:

• Attempting to fix matches or influence their outcome.
• Engaging in corrupt conduct by making improper approaches to fellow players.
• Failing to report corrupt approaches to the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU).

Shohely Akhter’s Cricketing Career

Shohely Akhter, an off-spin bowler, had a short international career for Bangladesh.

• She played 2 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and 13 T20 Internationals (T20Is) for Bangladesh.
• Her last appearance for the national team was in 2022.
• She was not part of Bangladesh’s squad for the 2023 Women’s T20 World Cup, but still made corrupt approaches to a player during the tournament.

How the Corruption Attempt Was Exposed

The ACU’s investigation into the case was based on a conversation that Shohely had with another Bangladeshi cricketer, identified by the ICC as ‘Player A’, through Facebook Messenger on February 14, 2023—the day of the Bangladesh vs. Australia match in the Women’s T20 World Cup.

The Fixing Attempt: What Shohely Offered

Shohely contacted her teammate and tried to convince her to participate in match-fixing. The key details of the fixing attempt include:

• Shohely told her teammate that her ‘cousin’ was involved in betting and had asked if she could get out hit wicket during the match against Australia.
• She offered 2 million Bangladesh Takas (approximately $18,000 USD) to the player if she agreed to carry out the fix.
• Shohely further mentioned that her cousin could pay more money if 2 million Takas was not enough.
• She promised secrecy, saying that she would delete all messages so there would be no evidence.

The Whistleblower: How the Corruption Was Stopped

Fortunately, the cricketer whom Shohely approached immediately reported the incident to the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU).

• Player A refused the offer and instead provided the ACU with all the voice notes and messages from Shohely.
• Even though Shohely had deleted the messages from her own device, the evidence provided by Player A led to a thorough investigation.
• The ACU determined that Shohely was guilty of attempting to corrupt matches, leading to her five-year ban.

The Impact of Shohely Akhter’s Ban

Shohely’s ban from all forms of cricket serves as a strong warning to cricketers worldwide about the consequences of corruption in the sport.

Key Takeaways from the Ban

• First-ever ICC corruption ban for a woman cricketer sets a historic precedent in the fight against match-fixing.
• Strengthens ICC’s zero-tolerance policy toward corruption in cricket.
• Encourages more players to report suspicious activities to the Anti-Corruption Unit.
• Protects the integrity of women’s cricket, which is growing rapidly on the global stage.

Summary of the News