'Party boy' Shoaib to miss inquiry

Shoaib Akhtar, who is currently shooting a television commercial in Mumbai, has said that he will be unable to appear before the medical inquiry committee set up by the PCB, which is due to meet on April 25. He says that he is busy in Mumbai due to "prior commitments", and has asked for more time.

Shahid Akhtar, Shoaib's brother, has written to the PCB to inform them that Shoaib will not appear before the panel on the scheduled date. "I have informed the board in writing that Shoaib would not be able to attend Sunday's meeting," he said to local newspapers, "and they should set another date in mutual understanding with him."

Shoaib was at the centre of a storm during the third Test at Rawalpindi, when he left the field after hurting his wrist, and refused to come back on, citing lower-back pains. MRI scans showed that there were no visible signs of injury, and he batted with gay abandon in Pakistan's second innings. It was widely rumoured that he may not have been injured after all, and the inquiry was set up precisely to ascertain the truth behind his injury, even though four other injured players were also asked to appear before it.

Shahid, perhaps gifted with the same talent of inopportune articulation as his brother, also rubbished rumours that Shoaib was partying and drinking in Mumbai. "No India media source has reported any such thing about Shoaib," he said. "We don't understand why efforts are on to malign him."

That statement, of course, is untrue, as Indian newspapers have been full of both reports and pictures of Shoaib partying. Mid Day, the Mumbai-based tabloid, has been notably rigorous in their coverage of Shoaib's partying, and begun one of their recent reports with the memorable lines, "Less pace bowler, more party boy". Here are their April 20 and April 22 reports of Shoaib's activities.