PCB serves legal notice on Shoaib for payment of fine

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Saturday served a legal notice on controversial pacer Shoaib Akhtar, asking him to pay the Rs.7 million fine imposed for repeated breach of discipline.

A senior PCB official told IANS that the Board's lawyer Tafazzul Rizvi has sent the notice to Shoaib, asking him to pay the fine as soon as possible.

Masoor Suhail, PCB's media chief, said that the move is a legal requirement, pointing out that the matter has been pending for a while and the player is supposed to pay the fine.

Shoaib was banned April 1 for five years over repeated breaches of discipline. Later an appeals committee reduced the ban to 18 months but imposed a fine of Rs.7 million on Shoaib. The player filed a plea against the decision in the Lahore High Court, which decided to suspend the ban till September, but upheld the fine.

Pakistan picked Shoaib in their 15-man squad for next month's Champions Trophy here. But there were indications Saturday that Shoaib might be dropped from the squad in case he fails to pay the fine within next couple of weeks.

However, Suhail was hopeful such a situation would not arise.

'We are sure that the matter would be settled amicably,' he said. 'Shoaib knows that he has to pay the fine and we believe that he would do that soon.'

Shoaib fell out with the PCB bosses after launching a scathing attack on the Board earlier this year. Since then most senior Board officials don't want him in the national team.

But national selectors are convinced that Shoaib should be a part of the Pakistan squad because it lacks any wicket-taking bowlers in the absence of fellow pacer Mohammad Asif, who is facing a ban over a positive dope test.