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Sri Lanka spinner Praveen Jayawickrama has been banned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) from all forms of cricket for a year, with six months suspended. The 26-year-old was charged under the ICC Anti-Corruption Code in August this year.
The final decision by the apex board comes after nearly two months. The ban was imposed on Jayawickrama after he admitted to breaching Article 2.4.7 of the Code, which states:
“Obstructing or delaying any investigation that may be carried out by the ACU, including concealing, tampering with, or destroying any documentation or other information that may be relevant to that investigation and/or that may be evidence or may lead to the discovery of evidence of corrupt conduct under the Anti-Corruption Code.”
Jayawickrama notably had 14 days from August 6 to respond to the charges leveled against him. The charges reportedly arise from his wrongdoings in international cricket and the Lanka Premier League.
As per the code, the spinner deleted the messages from a person who made an approach to him to engage in corrupt practices.
Praveen Jayawickrama has featured in a total of 15 games and scalped 32 wickets across all formats for Sri Lanka. He last played for the country in a T20I fixture against Australia in June 2022.
His last competitive appearance came for Moors in the Major Clubs Limited Over Tournament in August this year.
Sri Lanka climbs to third spot in WTC standings with a whitewash over New Zealand
Sri Lanka used the home conditions to their advantage in a two-match Test series against New Zealand last month. The Dhananjaya de Silva-led side dominated the Blackcaps to secure a 2-0 whitewash. They secured a victory by 63 runs in the first game and ended the series by registering a big win by an innings and 154 runs.
Kamindu Mendis (309) was the top-scorer in the series, while Prabath Jayasuriya (18) emerged as the finest bowler.
With this series victory, Sri Lanka are now third in the World Test Championship (WTC) standings. They have secured victories in five out of nine games and have a win percentage of 55.56.
