Afghanistan left-arm wrist-spinner Noor Ahmad has been suspended for 12 months from the UAE-based International League T20 (ILT20) for breaching his player agreement.

The 19-year-old Noor was signed up by Sharjah Warriors for the first season of the tournament in January-February 2023.

According to ILT20, the breach occurred when Noor was offered an extension by the Warriors for season two, with the same terms and conditions in accordance with the Player Agreement terms ahead of the 2024 season, but refused to sign the retention notice.

When Noor refused, the Warriors reached out to the ILT20 league to intervene.

He was initially recommended a 20-month ban by a disciplinary committee, but changed it to 12 months on account of Noor being a minor at the time of signing. Naveen-ul-Haq, another Afghanistan cricketer, received a 20-month ban in similar circumstances recently.

A statement from the tournament said:

“The ILT20’s three-member Disciplinary Committee which includes the league’s Chief Executive Officer David White, Head of Security and Anti-Corruption Col. Azam and Member Emirates Cricket Board Zayed Abbas investigated the matter and separately heard both the parties i.e. Noor and Sharjah Warriors and on examining the evidence before them conveyed its final verdict of a 12 month ban on Noor.

“The committee had initially recommended a 20 month ban but took into consideration the fact that Noor was a minor at the time of signing the Player Agreement and has represented to the committee that his agent had not informed him of the full terms of contract and as such pardoned eight months from his original ban.”

Ahmad recently featured for the Durban Super Giants in the SA20 league, and will be playing for Gujarat Titans in the 2024 IPL starting next month. He is currently with the Afghanistan national team, playing T20Is against Sri Lanka.

In the 2023 ILT20, Ahmad played seven matches, picking up four wickets at 37, with an economy of 7.04.

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