Daily Times

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Wednesday imposed a fine and issued a warning to batsman Umar Akmal and fast bowler Junaid Khan for their alleged misconduct during a domestic tournament, which surfaced last month. The controversy stirred up when Akmal, who was captaining Punjab team during the Pakistan Cup 2017, criticised Junaid in a veiled manner and expressed his unawareness in connection with the absence of Junaid before the start of a match. The tournament was held in Rawalpindi. “I am just told that Junaid is absent. I am surprised. The manager and the coach have informed me that he is not going to play today. This is shocking information for me as a captain,” Akmal had told reporters.

Shortly, in a tit for tat reaction, Junaid uploaded a video message on social media, clarifying his position. In his message, Junaid said that he had already informed the team management that he would not be able to turn up due to medical reasons. He held the captain responsible for the situation. “I am disappointed to hear what Akmal has said about me. He tried to give the impression that I ran away from the match. In fact, I am dealing with food poisoning and I have duly informed the team management about this. The team doctor has advised me to take rest,” Junaid had stated in the video clip.

The statement of Akmal followed by Junaid’s reaction prompted the PCB to take a notice of the situation and constitute a committee to probe into the matter. Subsequently, the committee found both the players guilty of violating the PCS’s code of conduct.

The committee imposed a fine of 50 percent of the match fee, on both Akmal and Junaid. The PCB also warned the two players that they would be under observation for a month starting May 18 and re-occurrence of breach of discipline will lead to one-month suspension. Both the players are on the contract of PCB’s Champions Trophy squad and are currently in England.