Akhtar a liability for Pakistan: former PCB chief

Lahore, May 29: Coming down heavily on Shoaib Akhtar, former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shaharyar Khan said the temparamental fast bowler was a liability for the national squad.

''In the last two years he was a problem for the coach, captain and the board and we could see he was more interested in playing for himself rather than the team and this attitude was having a bad effect on others,'' Khan told 'Geo TV'. ''When he didn't play the team did well and won. I think the fame and pampering he got early on in his career got to his head and he couldn't handle it maturely.'' He alleged that the 'Rawalpindi Express' had an attitude problem which was having a negative impact in the dressing room.

''In the last two years he was a problem for the coach, captain and the board and we could see he was more interested in playing for himself rather than the team and this attitude was having a bad effect on others,'' Khan stated.

Observing that all efforts to persuade the tearaway pacer to mend his ways had failed, the former PCB chief said,''The best way to handle him is to sit down and talk to him or ask his family members to talk sense into him and he would come around.''

UNI