DUBAI,— The International Cricket Council has handed a 15-month doping ban to United Arab Emirates batter Asif Khan after he tested positive for a banned substance, the governing body said Thursday.
The 36-year-old admitted breaking the ICC’s anti-doping rules and accepted the suspension linked to a metabolite of mesterolone, a substance found during an out-of-competition test conducted in September 2025, the ICC said in a statement.
The ban is backdated to Sept. 8, 2025, and will run through Dec. 7, 2026. Khan will be allowed to resume training with a team starting Oct. 8, the statement said.
Khan, who once played for Pakistan at the under-19 level, has appeared in 38 one-day internationals and 56 Twenty20 matches for the UAE since making his debut for the Gulf nation in 2022.
His final three T20 appearances, played against India, Oman and Pakistan during the 2025 T20 Asia Cup, will be erased from the official record books because those matches took place after the Sept. 8 test date, the ICC confirmed.
Khan, a right-handed batsman born in Pakistan, played domestic cricket in his home country between 2007 and 2014, appearing in 32 first-class matches for Lahore.
He later relocated to the UAE in 2017, hoping to qualify for the national team once he met residency requirements.
He earned his first national call-up in March 2022, when he was named to the UAE squad for a tri-nation ODI series. He made his ODI debut against Oman that same month.
In 2023, Khan scored two ODI centuries. Against Nepal, he made an unbeaten 101 off just 41 balls, one of the fastest hundreds by a batter from an associate cricket nation and the fourth-fastest in ODI history overall.
Weeks later, he hit a career-best 103 off 84 balls against the United States during a World Cup qualifying playoff.
The ICC has continued to enforce its anti-doping code across member nations as part of its broader integrity program.
(With files from AP, The International Cricket Council, Wikipedia)
Copyright © 2026 Dubai Diplomacy. All rights reserved.
Your support matters! Consider buying us a coffee — every bit helps keep independent news alive.
Related posts:
Pakistan to repay UAE’s $3.5 billion loan, ending rollovers
UAE deports Pakistani Shiites who return to lost jobs, frozen savings
UAE President visits Pakistan, meets Prime Minister
Why the Middle East’s “Islamic NATO” is an Illusion
Pakistani sexually assaults woman on FlyDubai flight to Bangkok
Pakistan’s UAE loan repayment pressures its economy
Dubai Takes Your Money, Then Your Freedom: British family case
UAE bets on AI but tech alone won’t build a developed nation
