Ashraf serves legal notice to Shoaib
Bureau Report

LAHORE—Shoaib Akhtar’s troubles continue as Nasim Ashraf, chairman of the PCB, has served a legal notice on the fast bowler for comments he made to a private television channel in the aftermath of the PCB’s decision to ban him for five years.
Shoaib appeared on a number of TV channels yesterday arguing his case, after he addressed a packed press conference claiming that he had been victimised. Though he refused to attack the chairman specifically on some channels, in an interview to the Express News channel, he alleged that the ban was punishment in return for refusing to give the chairman a share of his salary from the Indian Premier League (IPL). Shoaib also alleged that Ashraf had tried to exhort money from other Pakistani cricketers as well.
The notice, issued by the board’s legal firm on behalf of Ashraf, said that the comments made by Shoaib were “not only utterly outrageous, fabricated, and manifestly baseless” but were made “solely to character assassinate [Ashraf]”. It added that his allegations were a “counterblast” to the disciplinary action taken against Shoaib, and had damaged the reputation of Ashraf, as well as the Pakistan board.
The notice called upon Shoaib to “retract” his statements against Ashraf, and “tender an unconditional apology”. The notice also sought damages of Rs100 million (approximately US$1.6 million) to Ashraf for “defaming him personally” and another Rs100 million to the PCB for “sullying the name of the Pakistan Cricket Board and the Pakistan Cricket team.” Ashraf has threatened to seek legal remedies under the civil and criminal laws of Pakistan if Shoaib does not respond to the notice’s requirements. This is the second setback on the day for Shoaib, who just hours earlier, was barred from taking part in the IPL till the end of his five-year ban or until his ban is lifted. Shoaib was banned for comments he made after not being offered a contract by the PCB, in which he lashed out at domestic tournaments, pitches and the administration. The severity of the ban, argue the board, is the result of a litany of disciplinary issues; he was also on a two-year probationary period after hitting team-mate Mohammad Asif with a bat before the World Twenty20 last year, an act which also saw him banned for 13 matches and fined over US$50,000. The board had warned him that any further transgression during this period would result in a life ban.
The controversy of banning Shoaib Akhtar was further deepened here on Thursday when Pakistan Cricket Board taking notice of recent outburst of the express bowler served him a legal notice seeking damages of Rs 200 millions.
PCB’s legal advisor, Taffazul H Rizvi served the notice to the maverick bowler, on behalf of Chairman, PCB, Dr Nasim Ashraf, for his defamatory statements made on television on April 2.
PCB has asked the test cricketer who was banned for five years for his repeated mis-conduct for the same offense (issuing statements against PCB), to immediately retract his earlier statements against the Board in the same mode and manner in which they were made, tender an unconditional apology,pay Rs 100 million for defaming (him) PCB’s Chairman, Dr Nashim Ashraf, and another Rs 100 million for sullying the name of PCB and Pak cricket and restrain himself from repeating or making any further defamatory comments against him and any member of PCB.
Following is the text of the legal notice:- “ That you on April 2,2008 in a news interview telecast on the Express News Channel alleged that Our Client had pressurized you for and tried to extort from you payments from your Indian Premier League Contract and that disciplinary course of action taken against you by the Disciplinary Committee of the Pakistan Cricket Board was a response to this alleged refusal. You also alleged in the said interview that Our Client had also done the same with other members of the Pakistani Cricket Team, but you failed to give any names.