Cricketer Mustafa Bashir attack sentence to be reviewed

Bashir told his wife he could have killed her with the bat, the court heard

A cricketer's sentence for domestic abuse is to be reviewed amid an outcry over the judge's "leniency".

Mustafa Bashir, 34, received a suspended sentence at Manchester Crown Court in March for assaulting his wife.

Judge Richard Mansell QC did not impose a custodial term after hearing Bashir would lose out on a professional cricket contract if he were jailed.

But he has said he will review the sentence after Leicestershire County Cricket club denied any offer was made.

Bashir, of Hebers Court, Middleton, Greater Manchester, was said to have used a cricket bat to beat his wife, who he is no longer with, and forced her to drink bleach.

'Intelligent woman'

He was given an 18-month sentence, suspended for two years, after admitting assault occasioning actual bodily harm, assault by beating, destroying or damaging property and using a destructive substance with intent to maim.

After the hearing, Leicestershire CCC accused Bashir of "inventing" the job offer "in order, it would seem, to evade a prison sentence".

The club later contacted the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to deny any contact with Bashir.

Judge Mansell drew criticism from domestic abuse campaigners and several MPs when he told the court the victim was not vulnerable as she was "an intelligent woman with a network of friends" and a degree.

Sandra Horley, chief executive of Refuge, said: "[The judge's] comments - that he was not convinced of the victim's 'vulnerability' - show a shocking ignorance around the impact of domestic violence on women."