PCB lifts ban on Shoaib Malik

The one-man tribunal comprising retired judge Irfan Qadir also halved the Rs two million fine imposed on Malik by an inquiry committee of the Pakistan Cricket Board, PCB lawyer Talib Rizvi was quoted as saying in media reports here.

Malik, who got married to Indian tennis star Sania Mirza last month, was banned for indiscipline during Pakistan's disastrous tour of Australia during which the team was whitewashed in all three formats of the game.

The 28-year-old has already been included in the list of 35 probables for next month's Asia Cup and the tour of England after that.

Malik was accused of promoting infighting in the team and was even called a "termite" by one of the inquiry committee members during the initial hearings, the video recordings of which were leaked to the media a few days ago.

Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi is among those who is seen calling Malik a negative influence on the team in the leaked videos of the committee's proceedings.