Captain Shaheen Shah Afridi was fined PKR 1 million (about US$3,600) by the Lahore Qalandars after Punjab police accused him of violating security protocols at the team hotel in Lahore.
According to the Qalandars, the penalty was imposed in order to “uphold discipline and ensure accountability” among the team members. According to a source in ESPNCricinfo, Sikandar Raza, who was also included in the police report relating the same rules, would not face any consequences.
After four “unauthorised” people were able to enter the team’s hotel room, Raza and Shaheen were charged with a major security violation. Salman Naseer, the chief executive of the PSL, received a letter from the Punjab police accusing them of “forcefully escorting” guests to the all-rounder’s room.
A deputy police inspector said in a letter to PSL CEO Salman Naseer that Lahore Qalandars captain Shaheen Afridi and teammate Sikandar Raza disregarded security protocols by “forcefully escorting” the guests to a player’s room on Saturday night, where they spent over three hours.
Raza broke his silence on Monday over accusations that he and Afridi had violated security by letting four “unauthorized” individuals into the team’s hotel room. He said that these individuals were his family members and longtime acquaintances, and the Pakistani left-arm pacer was merely assisting him.
Raza has made it clear that the four individuals in question are close friends and family.
“Shaheen did not force anyone. My friends and family had come, and at my request, Shaheen helped them (come up to my room). If these were the SOPs (that visitors were not allowed into our rooms), I wasn’t aware, and to some extent, Shaheen was not aware either. The culprit here is me, not Shaheen. He went down on my request, because it was my close family and friends; I did not want to meet them in the business centre. We sat upstairs for 40 minutes,” Raza said.
