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Shoaib Akhtar will miss his first Indian Premier League match on Thursday between the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Bangalore Royal Challengers, at the Eden Gardens due to fitness problems, according to the team's coach John Buchanan. He was to play from the Kolkata Knight Rider's side. The team coach said on Wednesday, that Shoaib still needs to spend some more days with the team so that he can get along with all the other players. He added that he needs to be sure about Akhtar's fitness levels before allowing him to participate in the Indian Premier League.
Earlier this week, Shoaib Akhtar was cleared to play in the IPL after the Appellate Tribunal decided to suspend the ban for one month, until the next hearing on June 4. He was banned for comments made after not being offered a contract by the PCB in which he lashed out at the domestic tournaments, pitches and even the administration in general. He made these comments while he still is under a two-year probation period for hitting team-mate Mohammad Asif with a bat before the World Twenty20 last year. He is also dealing with a Rs.22 crores (US $3.37million) defamation suit filed against him by Nasim Ashraf, the PCB chief.
