Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Tuesday banned former international Shariful Haque indefinitely after an inquiry found him guilty of spot-fixing, BCB officials said. The 36-year-old was accused of approaching national player Mashrafe Mortaza before the first edition of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) earlier this year with a view to arranging spot-fixing, BCB spokesman Jalal Yunus said. “Shariful Haque has been banned from all cricketing activities for an indefinite period. We’ve also declared him persona non grata in all our venues and functions,” he told AFP. “His activities around cricket will also be carefully monitored by the board.” Haque, who played his only international match for Bangladesh against India in 1998, told AFP: “These charges are baseless and false.” Although the off-spinner hasn’t played any cricket this year, he has not officially retired.
