Pakistan's cricket board banned fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar from international and domestic cricket for five years for repeated breaches of discipline.Akhtar's comments and actions were harming the team and had even "affected the image of the country," board chairman Nasim Ashraf said after announcing the ban on Tuesday."He was given lot of chances but he was involved repeatedly in habitual offenses," Ashraf told a news conference. Ashraf said Akhtar can appeal the decision and noted that the bowler would also be free to play in the Indian Premier League, playing for Calcutta in the Twenty20 competition. Akhtar, who at his peak was the fastest bowler in cricket, appeared earlier Tuesday before a disciplinary committee after he criticized the PCB for omitting him from its roster of the top 15 contracted players.
Akhtar last played a Test match against India in December before he was sidelined due to back problem. He declared himself fit to play in a five-match one-day series against Zimbabwe in February but was left out. Selectors also overlooked him for the 16-member squad to play two one-day internationals against Bangladesh next week. Dubbed the "Rawalpindi Express" for his express pace, Akhtar's career was restricted by injuries to 46 tests after making his debut against the West Indies in 1997 and tarnished by a doping allegation.
Akhtar Tested positive for steroids in 2006 in a PCB-conducted, out of competition test, but had his two-year ban overturned by a Pakistani appeals committee. He has 178 test wickets at an average of 25.69 and 219 wickets at 23.2 in 138 limited-overs internationals.
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