Pakistan bans Australian cricketer for 'misconduct'

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) - The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Saturday banned Australian cricketer James Faulkner from playing in the ongoing edition of the local cricket league for "misconduct" and "insulting behavior," adding that he would not be drafted in future league competitions.

The Australian all-rounder, for his part, accused the PCB, the national governing body of the sport, of "not honoring" his contractual agreement.

The rare episode began with a series of Twitter posts by Faulkner, who announced his premature withdrawal from the seventh edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), accusing the cricket authorities of not paying off the amount of money promised to him.

"I've been here the whole duration and they (the PCB) have continued to lie to me," said Faulkner, who was representing the Quetta Gladiators franchise.

"It hurts to leave as I wanted to help to get international cricket back in Pakistan, as there is so much young talent and the fans are amazing," he said in another tweet, adding that the treatment he received from the PCB was "a disgrace."

Releasing a joint statement, the PCB and Quetta Gladiators rejected the allegations as "baseless," saying that 70% of the contractual payment had been transferred to Faulkner's "offshore" account, whereas the remaining 30% was due only 40 days after the completion of the ongoing edition, in line with the contract.

"In spite of the money being transferred and received in his account, Mr. Faulkner continued to insist that a second duplicate payment of the same amount be made to his account in Australia. This meant Mr. Faulkner would have been paid twice," the statement read.

It added that the PCB had engaged with Faulkner on Friday afternoon in an attempt to reason with him.

"Despite his reprehensible and insulting behavior during the conversation, Mr. Faulkner was assured that all his grievances would be addressed. He refused to reconsider his decision to take the field in a crucial match for his side, let his team down, and demanded that his travel arrangements be immediately made," the statement charged.

During this time, the PCB was also in constant contact with his agent, who was regretful and apologetic, the statement maintained, accusing Faulkner of deliberately damaging the property of the hotel where he was staying, as well as inappropriate and abusive behavior at the airport.

The Australian pacer, who is also famous for his aggressive batting in the middle order, is no stranger to controversy.

Last September, he departed from his former team, the Hobart Hurricanes, over a contractual dispute, alleging that the management offered him an "embarrassing" contract.

Faulkner made his international debut against India in 2012, representing Australia for the last time in 2017.

He is the first-ever player to pull out of the PSL, which began in 2015.