Guwahati, Feb 24 (PTI) The Assam Cricket Association (ACA) on Thursday banned the Northeast Frontier Railway Sports Association (NFRSA) U-19 team from participating in any tournament organised by it for the next three years after the team was found guilty of deliberately under-performing in an inter-district tourney earlier this month.
The team’s coach has been banned from taking part in any cricket activities under ACA for life, while the captain has been banned from any cricket activities under ACA for the next three years for working “against the game and spirit of cricket.” The ACA, however, dismissed allegations of match fixing during the group match between Jorhat and NFRSA teams at Golaghat on February 16-17 in the JK Baruah U19 Inter District Tournament 2021-22.
The Silchar District Sports Association had claimed that the NFRSA team allowed Jorhat to improve its net run rate towards the end of the match on the second day to ensure that Jorhat dislodges Silchar from top position in the group.
The match had ended in a draw between Jorhat and NFRSA.
The top among the three teams in the group qualified for the final round in the tourney, which came to an end on February 21 with Dhemaji emerging winner and Jorhat settling for the second position.
Addressing a press conference here, ACA secretary Devajit Saikia said the enquiry committee appointed to look into the allegation of match fixing, has rejected the accusation.
“Silchar didn’t have any grievance or objection till the last two overs of the match, and that the possibility of any kind of fixing in the last two overs has been ruled out,” he said.
“Further, two different and opposite positions were taken by the captains of the Jorhat and NFRSA teams regarding calling off the match after the 11th mandatory over, and as such, disagreement between the two teams was crystal clear,” he added.
Saikia said the “NFRSA U-19 team was found guilty of deliberately underperforming in the last two overs for reasons best known to them” and hence, it is being debarred from participating in any ACA or ACA-recognised tournament for the next three years.
The role of the NFRSA (U-19) team’s coach and the captain were “found to be against the game and spirit of cricket”.
Manager-cum-Coach Satyabrata Chakraborty has been banned from taking part in any cricket activities under ACA for life, the ACA secretary said.
“Captain of NFRSA (U-19) Ronit Akhter has similarly been banned from any cricket activities under ACA for the next three years.” Saikia added that the enquiry committee has held that the Jorhat team was in no way responsible for the under-performance of the NFRSA (U-19) team. PTI SSG PM PM
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Source: The Print
