PCB suspends, fines umpire Faisal Afridi for breaching safety protocols

• PCB fines 50% of Afridi's match fee for breaching the event’s Health and Safety protocols.
• “The PCB had announced it will follow a zero-tolerance approach towards any Health and Safety breaches," says PSL director Salman Naseer.
• Faisal Afridi pleads guilty to the charge and offers his regrets.

KARACHI:  The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has suspended umpire Faisal Afridi, member of its elite panels of umpires, for breaching the COVID-19 protocols for the seventh edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL).

According to the PCB, Faisal has been suspended for five PSL matches and has been imposed a fine of 50% of match fees of his next match.

Faisal was scheduled to supervise a total of seven matches for the Karachi leg of the PSL, but he wasn’t able to supervise any.

He missed his initial appointments after testing positive for COVID-19 upon his arrival at the team hotel in Karachi.

He was then sent for seven-day mandatory isolation and, according to the protocol, he was not supposed to step out of his room before returning two negative PCR results.

However, the 44-year-old former first-class cricketer stepped out of his room after his first negative result, without waiting for the result of the 2nd test, thus breaching the PCB’s health and safety protocols for the PSL.

The PCB said that Faisal had pleaded guilty to the charge and offered his regrets.

Faisal will, therefore, miss the Karachi leg of Pakistan Super League and will be available for appointment in Lahore’s leg of the tournament.

However, he will lose 50% of match fees of his next game in PSL – which is approximately $1,000.

PSL’s tournament director Salman Naseer said that the PCB had announced it will follow a zero-tolerance approach towards any health and safety breaches and the decision demonstrates the resolve and commitment to deliver a successful event in which all participants remain secure so that they continue to be available to their sides and entertain millions of fans following this event worldwide.