Shaoib, Asif still in danger of re-imposing ban: Pak expert

Lahore, Dec 28 (UNI) Pakistan pace duo of Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif were still in danger of a doping ban even after getting cleared by a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) anti-doping appeals committee, feels its dissenting member Danish Zaheer.

''I haven't read the contents of the appeal filed by WADA before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) but what I do know is that the Agency has a good ratio of winning doping cases whenever it has gone to the CAS in the past,'' Dr Zaheer, who is also head of the Pakistan Sports Medicine Association, said.

''WADA has won 14 such appeals cases in the past,'' he added.

The CAS in Switzerland is expected to hear next week an appeal by the World Anti-Doping Agency against PCB appeals committee's decision to overturn bans on Shoaib and Asif.

A tribunal in November banned Akhtar for two years and Asif for one year after they tested positive for the banned anabolic steroid nandrolone.

But, a three-member appeals committee, headed by retired Supreme Court Justice Fakhruddin Ebrahim, exonerated the pace duo on December 5 in a 2-1 verdict with Dr Zaheer dissenting, saying they had not knowingly taken the substance and that they had not been properly educated about doping matters.

Dr Zaheer said the appeals committee verdict was not along the lines of international anti-doping regulations as ''the entire testing procedure carried out by the PCB was flawed.'' ''I have gone through the procedure and I must say that it was questionable. The urine samples did not carry the names of the players and one couldn't be sure that the sample that tested positive was that of Shoaib or Inzamam-ul-Haq's. Asif's sample did not even carry the date,'' he explained.

He said from the very beginning, he was of the view that the procedure for taking the samples of the two bowlers and other cricketers was flawed and it should have been re-conducted in a proper manner as laid down by the WADA regime.

He pointed out that when he read the sample forms of the cricketers during the appeals process, he could not make out which form belonged to which cricketer.

''The players were told by telephone calls that they were to be tested. According to international regulations, an athlete should be notified in person and should be told about dope tests just an hour before it is to be carried out.

''There were a number of shortcomings in the manner the forms were filled and samples were taken. That was why I had suggested re-conducting of the tests in my dissenting note,''he said.

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