ST JOHN’S (Antigua), Nov 13: West Indies all rounder Runako Morton has been banned for a year after being found guilty of bringing the game into disrepute by the disciplinary committee of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), the Board said Tuesday.

Morton as well as Barbados left-arm spin bowler Sulieman Benn and fast bowler Tino Best were also fined 10 percent of their tour fees for breaches of rules “concerning their conduct and behaviour during the West Indies A Team’s visit to Ireland, Britain and Canada during the summer,” WICB said in a statement.

Morton’s ban was imposed after he was found guilty of “engineering an early departure” from the ICC Champions Trophy series in Sri Lanka last September.

The WICB said the player had thereby brought himself into disrepute.

The WICB did not say what the players had done, but Morton left Sri Lanka early citing a family bereavement.

The board also said the breaches of the Code of Conduct during the A team tour concerned dignity, standards of behaviour, confrontation with players or officials and the use of bad language and sledging.

WICB was not immediately available for comment, but said in the statement that it had told Morton to seek professional counselling “necessary for him to correct the problems he is currently experiencing”.

“At the end of the suspension period, Morton will have to submit to the WICB cogent evidence that he underwent the counselling and is fit to resume participating in WICB sanctioned cricket matches,” it said.—Reuters