Ex-Zimbabwe Cricket director banned from cricket for 10 years

Enock Ikope is found guilty of breaching three counts of the ICC Anti-Corruption Code.

Graeme Cremer (third from left) had been offered money to fix the result of the Test series against West Indies.

Enock Ikope, the former Zimbabwe Cricket director, has been banned from the game for 10 years for corruption linked to the 2017 West Indies tour fix attempt. Ikope was found guilty of breaching three counts of the International Cricket Council’s Anti-Corruption Code.

Ikope’s suspension announced by the ICC on Wednesday follows the 20-year-ban handed out to Rajan Nayer, a former senior Zimbabwe cricket official, in March, 2018. Nayer, the treasurer and marketing director of the Harare Metropolitan Cricket Association, admitted to offering Zimbabwe captain Graeme Cremer USD 30,000 to fix the result of the Test series with the West Indies, which the visitor won.

Cremer informed then coach Heath Streak of the approach and the matter was referred to the ICC.

The ICC in a statement said Ikope had failed and obstructed to cooperate with its investigation, including the “deletion of data from his mobile phone before handing it over to the ICC’s anti-corruption tribunal.”

ICC general manager Alex Marshall said: “Non-cooperation and obstruction of our investigations by participants to the Code are simply not acceptable and I hope this and other recent sanctions sends out a clear message to anyone involved in the sport.”

He added: “ Once again we must thank an international captain, Graeme Cremer, for his absolute professionalism in recognising the initial approach by Mr Nayer, rejecting and then reporting it. We are thankful to him and to Zimbabwe Cricket for all the help during the investigations.”