The chairman of the Indian Premier League, Lalit Modi has declared that all players participating in the Twenty20 Cricket Tournament will have to undergo a random dope test. This announcement came after it was reported in the Nation that Pakistani cricket player Shoaib Akhtar was cross-examined at the Karachi airport about a bagful of syringes he had with him before heading for Mumbai earlier this month.

 

It was declared by the IPL commissioner that the dope test on the cricket players will be carried out within two to three days’ time. The Pakistan Cricket Board, on the other hand, is seen playing down the report about Akhtar’s cross-examination at Karachi airport. The Nation recently published that the said Pakistani player was interrogated by Karachi airport officials prior boarding the flight to Mumbai en route Kolkata about a bunch of syringes in his bag.  

 

The fast bowler, who is a member of Kolkata Knight Riders team owned by actor Shahrukh Khan, responded that he required the syringes as he was a diabetic. This is the very first time that any one has heard of Shoaib Akhtar suffering from this illness. On being asked to comment on this incident, a senior officer remarked that it was not a big deal as the syringes were empty and did not contain any stuff. Even Shafqat Naghmi, the chief operating officer said he was unaware of Akhtar’s medical history and added that he would have to find out.