Pakistan greats blame Asif, PCB for doping scandal

Karachi, July 16 (ANI): Former Pakistani players have blamed fast bowler Mohammad Asif and the Pakistan Cricket Board for the latest doping breach.

"I blame both Asif and the PCB," said former Pakistan Captain Zaheer Abbas.

Speaking about Asif's detention in the Gulf, Abbas said, "He is a hugely talented player, but seems so ignorant that he kept an illegal drug in his pocket."

"The PCB should have properly educated Asif and it seems that a good talent is spoiled now. I see a dark future for Asif who himself was not serious about his game," Abbas added.

Another former captain, Ramiz Raja, said, "It is a very unfortunate situation and Pakistan cricket is in the headlines for the wrong reasons. Asif should not have been that careless and the PCB should have nipped the evil in the bud when it happened in 2006."

The Board of Control for Cricket in India on Monday announced that Asif tested positive for a banned substance during random testing at the Indian Premier League (IPL).

The Indian Cricket Board has confirmed the player who was under the drug scanner during the IPL, is Mohammad Asif.

Asif, 25, played for the Delhi Daredevils team in the IPL, a lucrative Twenty20 tournament that ran from April 18-June 1 and featured the world's top players.

The PCB had been informed of Asif's positive test and it depended on the player if he wanted his 'B' sample to be tested, the statement said.

If Asif takes up the offer, the case will be referred to the IPL's three-member Drugs Tribunal that includes former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, once the results of the 'B' sample are known.

Asif was detained at Dubai airport for three weeks for possessing opium while returning from the IPL in June. But Dubai public prosecutors dropped the case citing "insignificance" and deported him to Pakistan.

Meanwhile, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has put the onus of taking action against Asif on the BCCI.

The ICC said it had been informed of the positive dope test, speculated to be of a sub-continental fast bowler, by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) accredited laboratory where the randomly collected samples were tested. (ANI)