Mohammad Shahzad earns reprimand for smoking at the ground

Mohammad Shahzad was reprimanded by match officials after he smoked at the Shere Bangla National Stadium on Friday. A demerit point was also added to Shahzad's disciplinary record as his action was found to be in breach of Article 2.20 of the BCB code of conduct, which relates to "conduct that is contrary to the spirit of the game".

Shahzad was among the players who were milling around the ground waiting for Minister Group Dhaka's BPL match against Comilla Victorians to begin. Both of Friday's matches were abandoned due to rain, but the talking point was how Shahzad flouted smoking rules inside the stadium.

According to the BCB's press release, Shahzad admitted to the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by match referee Neeyamur Rashid and, as such, there was no need for a formal hearing.

Several media outlets carried photographs of Shahzad smoking in the stadium while standing next to some other players. There are also reports of Dhaka coach Mizanur Rahman being the first to warn Shahzad not to smoke on the outfield. Later, Tamim Iqbal apparently asked him to get inside the dressing room.

Shahzad has been a Dhaka regular, having made 53 and 42 apart from four single-digit scores in the tournament so far. Dhaka are third on the table with seven points from seven games after Friday's washout.