Banned Pak pacer Asif files appeal against ICC ban

Mohammad Asif has filed an appeal against his five-year ban by the ICC with the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland.

Karachi: Pakistan`s banned fast bowler Mohammad Asif has filed an appeal against his five-year ban by the ICC with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland.

The ICC anti-corruption tribunal had banned Asif and two other Pakistani cricketers, Salman Butt and Mohammad Aamir in February last year after finding them guilty of involvement in spot fixing during the fourth Test against England at Lord`s in 2010. "The appeal filed in the CAS against the ICC ban is founded upon multiple grounds that include the argument that the ICC tribunal breached its own proceedings and in other ways infringed fundamental human rights to which Asif is entitled," a spokesman for the legal firm representing Asif said. "In such a situation the ICC ban is not only flawed, it could also be unlawful," he added. The spokesman said the CAS will now set a date for the hearing. While Butt and Aamir had filed appeals with the CAS immediately after their bans, Asif was advised by his lawyers to wait until the conclusion of the trial in the Southwark crown court in London. Last year in October, the trio were given different jail terms by the London court. The court found Butt and Asif guilty of conspiracy to cheat and conspiracy to accept corrupt payments for fixing part of the Lord`s Test. Asif is presently serving time at her Majesty`s Canterbury prison in category `C` which specialises in housing foreign criminals convicted in Britain. In another related development, a leading newspaper on Saturday claimed that Aamir could be released from Her Majesty`s Portland Prison, known as Weymouth in Dorset, England, as early as next month. Quoting sources in London, the report said that the 19-year-old pacer would be released after the completion of half of his jail term on February 3 as per the British laws. It is expected that the cricketer will be released on bail over good attitude. He was sentenced to six months jail term by the crown court which took into consideration his age and admittance of guilt in the case. PTI