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| Mohammed Asif has launched a challenge against his poistive test [AFP] |
The lawyer of Pakistan paceman Mohammad Asif is confident his client will be cleared by testing of his B sample following an initial positive doping test.
"As a lawyer, I am quite hopeful that Asif will come out clean from this doping case and will again represent Pakistan in international cricket,'' Shahid Karim said.
Karim was angered by the public release of Asif's positive A sample test.
"There are certain rules which were not followed in this case,'' Karim said.
"The authorities should have waited for the B sample test before revealing the identity of the player.''
Asif tested positive from a sample taken on May 30, while he was playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for Delhi Daredevils.
The right-arm paceman has challenged the findings and requested the B sample test.
Bowler suspended
The Pakistan Cricket Board has suspended 25-year-old Asif from playing all forms of the game and has also dropped him from the provisional list of 30 players for this September's Champions Trophy in Pakistan.
Karim was not sure which banned substance was found in Asif's A sample.
"It's a long list of banned substances,'' Karim said.
"So far I have not received all the relevant documents of this case to
say which substance was found in Asif's ``A sample'' this time.''
Following the completion of the IPL season, and prior to news of this latest positive drug test, Asif was detained in Dubai for weeks after airport authorities found an illegal substance. He was later released without charge.
In 2006, Asif and fellow-paceman Shoaib Akhtar were pulled out from the Champions Trophy after both tested positive for the banned steroid nandrolone during the PCB's internal dope testing.
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