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as CT preliminary squad named
Thursday, July 23, 2009
By our correspondent
KARACHI: Dope-tainted pacer Mohammad Asif on Wednesday heard some good news in quite a while when Pakistan recalled him in their 30-man squad for the ICC Champions Trophy to be held in South Africa from September 22.
But there was no such luck for fellow fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, who was overlooked for the eight-nation tournament.
Shoaib, who turns 34 next month, was unable to prove he was fully match fit and was left out of the provisional squad that includes two former Indian Cricket League (ICL) rebels - Imran Nazir and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan.
Shoaib was withdrawn from the ICC World Twenty20 squad in May after suffering genital warts. Following this latest snub, his ambitions of returning to international cricket have come under a cloud.
Asif, however, can hope to make his international comeback with Pakistan's opening match of the Champions Trophy on September 23 against the West Indies. The lanky pacer will complete his one-year ban just a day before that game.
The Sheikhupura-born player was banned for a year after testing positive for banned anabolic steroid nandrolone during the inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) last summer. Since then he has been going through a rough phase and was last month fined Rs10 million by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for his 19-day detention in Dubai last summer. Asif was detained in Dubai last summer after being caught at the airport with a small quantity of opium. Also set to play in the Champions Trophy are Imran Nazir and Rana Naved, who return to national duty after remaining in international wilderness for two years because of their association with the unofficial ICL.
The preliminary squad includes several rookies, who have been rewarded for their impressive showing on a recent tour of Australia.
They include Umer Akmal, who was one of the success stories of Pakistan A team's recently-concluded tour of Australia. Other newcomers include Azhar Ali and Sheharyar Ghani.
Pakistan's Preliminary Squad: Younis Khan (captain), Salman Butt, Nasir Jamshed, Khalid Latif, Azhar Ali, Imran Nazir, Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Amin, Umer Akmal, Sheharyar Ghani, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq, Rana Naveed, Yasir Arafat, Fawad Alam, Kamran Akmal, Sarfraz Ahmed, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamir, Abdul Rauf, Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Talha, Sohail Tanvir, Rao Iftikhar, Wahab Riaz, Saeed Ajmal, Abdul Rehman, Mohammad Hafeez.
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ISSN 1563-9479 
