Seven-year match-fix ban for Oman player

Oman's Yousuf Abdulrahim Al Balushi has been banned from cricket for seven years for match-fixing.

The International Cricket Council says Balushi was found guilty of breaching the ICC Anti-Corruption Code on four counts relating to Twenty20 World Cup qualifiers in the United Arab Emirates last year.

The 29-year-old admitted the charges and accepted the sanction, the world governing body said in a statement.

"This is a very serious offence where a player attempted but failed to get a teammate to engage in corrupt activity in high profile games and this is reflected in the severity of the sentence," said General Manager Integrity Alex Marshall.

"Without Mr Balushi's admission of guilt and full co-operation throughout our investigation, the ban could have been significantly longer.

"The player has also indicated he is willing to contribute to future integrity education programs on our behalf to help younger players learn from his mistakes."

Oman has qualified for the T20 World Cup in Australia later this year.