Anwar was charged with two breaches of the ICC code. © Getty

Four UAE players, including national captain Mohammed Naveed, have been charged under the ICC anti-corruption code and provisionally suspended just days ahead of the T20 World Cup Qualifier, which the Emirates will be hosting over the next two weeks.

UAE captain Mohammad Naveed was withdrawn from the Emirates squad without explanation on Thursday (October 10), whilst top-order bat Shaiman Anwar and seamer Qadeer Ahmed were likewise withdrawn ahead of UAE's first warm-up match against Scotland on Monday, with left-arm seamer Ahmed Raza taking over the captaincy.

The late withdrawal raised speculation as to the reasons behind the ECB's actions, and the worst was confirmed today with the announcement that all three, together with local player Mehardeep Chhayakar, have been suspended under the ICC's anti-corruption code on charges relating to conspiracy to fix the upcoming tournament or failure to cooperate with the ACU investigation.

The Emirates team management had already called up three players, seamers Junaid Siddique and Waheed Ahmed and batsman Darius D'Silva, as cover for the trio in their warm-up matches, and their addition to the squad is understood to have been approved by the event technical committee.

Waheed impressed in the warm-up against the Scots, taking 3-18 from 4 overs in the host's 37-run win, and took three more against Papua New Guinea yesterday whilst D'Silva made an unbeaten 43 from the top of the order before retiring. Nonetheless, the suspension will come as a blow to the squad, who lose their stand-out strike bowler and skipper in Naveed and their most experienced bat in Anwar, and to the reputation of the game in the Emirates, which had hoped to shake off a reputation as a nexus of corruption in the game.

It is not the first time that the issue of match fixing has made headlines in association with Emirati cricket. In Al-Jazeera's explosive documentary on match-fixing last year, alleged fixers claimed on camera that "we have the UAE team in our hand," claiming that they had three batsmen and two bowlers on their payroll who were prepared to deliberately under-perform and boasting that they were "very smart that way."

Earlier last year farcical footage emerging from the "Ajman All-Stars" competition, a private, unsanctioned league located in the same city where Chhayakar plays his cricket, prompted another ACU investigation into possible corruption.

Qadeer stands accused of "disclosing inside information to Chhayakar...in circumstances where he knew or should have known that the information might be used for betting purposes" apparently in relation to the UAE's tour to the Netherlands in early August, whilst Chhayakar is charged with refusing to cooperate with the subsequent investigation. Anwar and Naveed are both charged with offences pertaining to attempts to fix the Qualifier itself, with Naveed additionally facing charges relating to the upcoming ECB's T10 League.

The latter pair are both established figures in the Emirati squad, Naveed as strike-bowler and captain, and Anwar as a senior player. The veteran Anwar is currently the UAE's highest-ranked T20I batsman, rated 20th in the world, and is their leading T20I run-scorer. Coming off the back of an impressive outing at the recent Global T20 in Canada, where he finished third in the run tables behind JP Duminy and Heinrich Klaassen, Anwar looked set to play a key role in the host's qualification campaign.

Yet Naveed's loss will likely come as a still heavier blow to the side in both competitive and moral terms. Seen as a rising star on the Associate and franchise circuit, Naveed starred with bat and ball in the UAE's first ever victory over a Full Member at the 50-over WC Qualifiers last year, named player of the match for his efforts in the historic win over hosts Zimbabwe, and briefly breaking into the top-ten of the ICC T20 bowling rankings.

Naveed took over the captaincy from Rohan Mustafa earlier this year after the former was disciplined for his comments regarding facilities at the Asia Cup, and his story has been held up as an inspiration to young cricketers in the Emirates. From playing street cricket in the remote town of Khor Fakkan on the far side of the country from the cricketing centres of Dubai and Sharjah, Naveed first caught the attention of the UAE selectors after travelling some 100kms by bus to attend net sessions in Sharjah, quickly transitioning from tape-ball to hard-ball and becoming an indispensible cog in the Emirati attack.

The four players have 14 days from today (October 16) to respond to the charges.

Mohammed Naveed

Breach of Article 2.1.1 - contriving, or being party to an agreement or effort to fix or contrive or otherwise influence improperly, the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect of matches in the upcoming ICC World T20 Qualifiers 2019.

Breach of Article 2.4.4 - failing to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations received to engage in conduct in relation to the ICC World T20 Qualifiers 2019 that would amount to corrupt conduct under the Code.

Naveed has also been charged with a further two breaches of the Emirates Cricket Board Code for the T10 League. The ICC has been appointed by the ECB as the Designated Anti-Corruption Official for the purposes of the ECB's Code at the T10 League (as it had in previous editions) and as such has issued the following two charges on the ECB's behalf:

Breach of Article 2.1.1 - contriving, or being party to an agreement or effort to fix or contrive or otherwise influence improperly, the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect of matches in the upcoming T10 League 2019

Breach of Article 2.4.4 - failing to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations received to engage in conduct that would amount to corrupt conduct under the Code.

Qadeer Ahmed Khan

Breach of Article 2.4.4 - failing to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations received to engage in conduct that would amount to Corrupt Conduct under the Code in relation to the Zimbabwe v UAE series in April 2019.

Breach of Article 2.3.2 - disclosing Inside Information to Mehar Chhayakar in August 2019 in circumstances where he knew or should have known that the information might be used for betting purposes.

Breach of Article 2.4.4 - failing to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations received to engage in conduct that would amount to Corrupt Conduct under the Code in relation to the Netherlands v UAE series in August 2019.

Breach of Article 2.4.5 - failing to disclose to the ACU full details of any facts or matters that came to his attention that may evidence Corrupt Conduct under the Code by another Participant.

Breach of Article 2.4.6 - failing or refusing to cooperate with an investigation being carried out by the ACU in relation to possible Corrupt Conduct under the Code.

Breach of Article 2.4.7 - obstructing or delaying an ACU investigation including by concealing information that may be relevant to that investigation.

Shaiman Anwar Butt

Breach of Article 2.1.1 - contriving, or being party to an agreement or effort to fix or contrive or otherwise influence improperly, the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect of matches in the upcoming ICC World T20 Qualifiers 2019.

Breach of Article 2.4.4 - failing to disclose to the ACU full details of any approaches or invitations received to engage in conduct in relation to the ICC World T20 Qualifiers 2019 that would amount to corrupt conduct under the Code.

Mehardeep Chhayakar

Breach of Article 2.4.6 - failing or refusing to cooperate with an investigation being carried out by the ACU in relation to possible Corrupt Conduct under the Code.