Mohammad Shahzad suspended by Afghanistan Cricket Board

Shahzad, his country's all-time top scorer at international level, has received the punishment for travelling out of the country without seeking permission of the governing board.

A statement from the ACB read, "As per ACB’s policies, any player travelling out of the country is required to seek the permission of ACB. Shahzad has not adhered to this, repetitively."

The suspension comes after an accumulation of incidents, the first instance cited during the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup in England and Wales. Shahzad was withdrawn from the squad and sent home from the tournament having played just matches following a 'disciplinary matter'. It also appears that he was absent for arranged meetings in connection to his omission.

"Mohammad Shahzad did not attend meetings scheduled with the Discipline Committee on 20th and 25th of the last month," the statement read.

"The Discipline Committee will meet after Eid-ul Adha holidays to assess the breaches by Mohammad Shahzad and make a decision to be publicized soon. ACB has well-equipped training and practice facilities within the country and Afghan players do not require to travel abroad for such purposes."

Afghanistan must now prepare without Shahzad for a one-off Test against Bangladesh on 9 September, before taking them on again in a tri-series with Zimbabwe later in the month.