Noor Ahmed becomes the second Afghan player after Naveen-Ul-Haq to receive an ILT20 ban

Dubai: Afghanistan spinner Noor Ahmed was handed a 12-month ban by ILT20 after he was found to have breached his contract with Sharjah Warriors. Noor thus became the second player from Afghanistan to be excluded by the ILT20. Earlier, his national and Warriors teammate Naveen-ul-Haq was suspended for the same reason.

One of the sought-after spinners in the world, the 19-year-old Norwegian signed for Sharjah Warriors in the first season (2023) of ILT20. He was also offered a letter of retention by the franchise but went on to play for Durban Super Giants in SA20 instead. He did not sign the Warriors' retention notice.

According to an ILT20 release, Noor was given the retention notice before the start of the second season under “the same terms in accordance with the terms of the Player Agreement.” Following his refusal to sign, Warriors were left with no option but to approach the league's disciplinary committee directly.

The committee investigated the matter and heard from both Noor and Warriors. A 20-month ban was initially recommended for Noor, before his age was taken into account, as he was a minor when he signed the contract. His suspension was later reduced to twelve months as Noor explained that his agent had not informed him of the detailed terms in the contract.

In the first season, Noor played seven matches for Warriors and took four wickets. He also scored 148 runs, at an average of 37 and an economy of 7.04. Earlier, Naveen was suspended for the same reason. He will not play in ILT20 in either 2024 or 2025.