The Pakistan Super League (PSL) witnessed controversy as Lahore Qalandars batter Fakhar Zaman was charged with ball-tampering during Sunday’s match against Karachi Kings, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed.

The alleged incident occurred in the final over, with Karachi Kings needing 14 runs to win.

Fakhar Zaman, along with Lahore captain Shaheen Afridi and fast bowler Haris Rauf, engaged in a brief discussion, during which Fakhar and Rauf passed the ball between them.

The on-field umpire approached Rauf to inspect the ball. Following consultation with the square-leg umpire, five penalty runs were awarded to Karachi Kings, and the ball was replaced.

PCB charges and allegations

Fakhar Zaman has been charged with a Level 3 breach under Article 2.14 of the PCB code of conduct, which governs any alteration of the ball.

The incident also falls under Article 41.3 of the PSL code. Fakhar denied the allegations during the initial disciplinary hearing led by match referee Roshan Mahanama.

The matter will be heard further within 48 hours, after which the match referee will deliver a final verdict.

Karachi Kings’ Hasan Ali was fined 10% of his match fee for breaching the code of conduct. Hasan admitted the charge and accepted the punishment.

The five-run penalty proved costly, as Karachi chased down the target of 129 with just three balls to spare, thanks to Abbas Afridi’s decisive four and six.

Team reactions

Post-match, Shaheen Afridi said they would review video footage of the incident before commenting further:

“I don’t know about this, and we’ll see if it’s there on camera and discuss it,” he said.

Fakhar, 35, could face a one- or two-match ban if found guilty of ball-tampering for a first offence in the PSL, drawing parallels to the 2018 Australian ball-tampering scandal involving David Warner, Steve Smith, and Cameron Bancroft.