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LAHORE, Dec 1: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has imposed six-month ban on Test wicket keeper Rashid Latif, from first class cricket, besides fining him Rs15,000 for refusing to continue a Quaid-i-Azam Trophy match against Faisalabad as captain of Karachi Blues at Iqbal Stadium Faisalabad on Nov 26.
A PCB spokesman said that the chairman of the board took the decision after receiving a inquiry committee report. He said that the chairman had exercised his power to only penalise Rashid and not his team. But the spokesman said the chairman in view of the fact that Rashid appeared to have acted independently, exercised his discretionary power in deciding that the Karachi "B" team would be allowed to continue participating in the Trophy and that no fine or restriction would be imposed on them for a breach of playing conditions.
AFP ADDS: The ban effectively appears to have ended 36-year-old Rashid's hopes of staging a comeback since losing his place in the national team last year. He also accused the PCB of bearing a grudge over his comment that Pakistan's series levelling loss to India in their fourth one-day game in March was "suspect".
"I have appealed against the ban because it's against the rules which say that you can scratch a team on protest and not an individual," Rashid said. "PCB has taken its grudge of my suspecting Pakistan's loss to India in March this year," he added.
