Saturday, July 19, 2008

Asif wants B sample test postponed

Mohammad Asif has asked for more time to prepare his case.

Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Asif has asked for his B sample test, which had been scheduled for July 28, to be postponed. His lawyer, Shahid Karim, wants more time to prepare for the case and make travel arrangements.

Karim said Asif has yet to receive the required documents from the Indian Premier League authorities relating to the A sample test, without which he could not prepare for the case.

"From the IPL we certainly want the documents that relate to the procedures they adopted for the 'A' sample test and we are entitled to have them," Karim told PTI. "We also want certain documents from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) that might be relevant to the case."

ICC anti-doping regulations provide players and/or their representative the right to be present when the B sample is opened and analysed. That means Asif and his lawyer will have to travel to Switzerland, where the testing will be done in a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)-accredited laboratory. "We will not be able to make all the travel arrangements to Switzerland by July 28," Karim told Cricinfo. "The visas have to be processed and documents have to be obtained."

The IPL announced on Monday that Asif had tested positive for a banned substance, following which the Pakistan Cricket Board suspended him.