Controversial fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar’s international career was left hanging in balance on Wednesday after an appellate tribunal upheld the five-year ban imposed on him by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), but allowed him to play in the Indian Premier League.

But his position in the Twenty20 extravaganza still remained uncertain, with IPL commissioner and chairman Lalit Modi saying the governing council of the IPL would take a decision after receiving the tribunal’s order.

In a carefully worded statement, the tribunal said the ban would remain in place until the tribunal concluded its proceedings, but allowed Akhtar to play anywhere else in the world, including the IPL.

But since the ban has not been vacated as desired by Akhtar’s lawyers despite his dramatic public apology on Monday, for the moment his career appears to be at a dead end.

Justice (retd) Aftab Farrukh, who heads the tribunal, told reporters after a hearing at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore that the ban would stay until further proceedings, which will resume in June. He said the lawyers for Akhtar had argued for suspending the ban, but the tribunal felt circumstances did not allow for this.
“We don’t think he has tried to reform himself. He has apparently repeatedly violated discipline and embarrassed the Board, his team-mates and the nation,” Farrukh said.

The observations by the retired judge of the Lahore High Court mean even the tribunal is undecided about the case and is not convinced by Akhtar’s public apology made before it on Monday.

Farrukh, however, said in the interests of fair play, the tribunal had decided to allow Akhtar to play outside Pakistan for any team.

“He can’t play anywhere in Pakistan or for Pakistan domestically or internationally. But there is no bar on him playing anywhere else in the world,” Farrukh said. “This is also the order of the disciplinary committee of the Board.”

The interim order appears a move to allow Akhtar to play in the IPL.

IPL to wait
But Modi told Geo News that the governing council of the IPL would take a decision on whether to allow Akhtar to play in the IPL later on. “I am not ready to give a statement as yet. I am still trying to get my governing council on board and I will try to get everybody’s opinion before saying anything on the tribunal order,” Modi said.

He also confirmed that PCB chairman Nasim Ashraf had spoken to him and informed him that Akhtar had been allowed to play in the IPL. “We still have to look at the order copy and other things. He is still banned from playing in Pakistan. My question is why outside Pakistan, why can he not play in Pakistan? We have to still examine the implications. It is not a simple case.”