DUBAI: Pakistan Cricket Board's efforts to get paceman Mohammad Aamer's ban relaxed, initiated by former chairman Najam Sethi last year, are set to bear fruits next month.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is likely to revise its code of conduct for players in its next meeting in November, which will allow the banned players to resume playing domestic cricket a few months before their ban expires.
Aamer is likely to feature in domestic cricket after February next year as the revision in the code is likely to get approved.
Aamir was banned along with his teammates Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif in a spot fixing scandal during Pakistan's tour of England in 2010. All three players were banned for at least five years, with Butt being suspended for five years and Asif two.
Sethi initiated a campaign by putting a resolution in the annual meeting of the ICC, barely a week after taking over in June last year. It prompted the ICC to form a committee under Giles Clark to look into the matter. It was persuaded again in October 2013 meeting and in April 2014.
ICC Chief Executive David Richardson on Monday confirmed the provision is likely to be tabled in ICC’s November 10meeting in Dubai.
PCB's current chairman Shaharyar Khan also persuaded the matter in ICC's business meeting in Dubai in the second week of October and was confident that it will be approved.
"The revised code is being discussed in the meetings and hopefully we could bring it to you in finality in November meetings. But there is a provision now in the revised code, which will allow a player who has been banned internationally to play domestic cricket a certain period up from his ban coming to an end. In theory, if you are banned for five years, when the five years lapse, you can basically come and play cricket internationally at the level that is required."
As per rules, the banned player will submit an appeal, which will be forwarded to the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit of the ICC and after its recommendations, the matter will be passed to the ICC Board. After the home board's approval, the player will be allowed to feature in domestic cricket.
