A PAKISTAN Cricket Board (PCB) drugs tribunal on Wednesday banned fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar for two years and fellow pace bowler Mohammad Asif for one year after finding them guilty of doping.
The bans, effective from October 15, rule both out of domestic and international cricket, including next year's World Cup. Akhtar and Asif were sent home from the Champions Trophy in India on October 16 after the PCB said they had tested positive for the performance-enhancing drug nandrolone.
Both had said they did not take any banned substances knowingly, but they did not challenge the test results and declined an offer to have their 'B samples' tested.
"We gave them both every chance to present their case ... they failed to prove their innocence," tribunal chief Shahid Hamid told reporters.