From Dawn:

Cricket-Pakistan’s Akhtar, Asif win drugs ban appeal KARACHI, Dec 5 (AFP) Pakistan fast bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif Tuesday won their appeals against bans for doping. A three-member appeals committee in Karachi accepted the duo’s defence that neither was advised on taking vitamin supplements which may have led to them testing positive for the banned steroid nandrolone. Appeals committee chairman Fakhruddin Ibrahim told reporters the team’s management was to blame for failing to inform the two bowlers about vitamin supplements. The committee, also including former Test cricketer Haseeb Ahsan and doping expert Dr. Danish Zaheer, made its decision by a 2-1 majority, with Zaheer the dissenting voice because he wanted more tests on both players, Ibrahim said. “I missed playing cricket for my country and now I hope that I will resume my career,” Akhtar said. “I am breathing again, my life was jolted no end by the ban. I can’t describe the feeling,” he added. “I am delighted to hear that I will be playing again. These two months have been the worst of my life and only today I resumed training,” said Asif. “I hope the bad days are over now. I badly want to play,” he added. (First Posted @ 12:30 PST Updated @ 17:12 PST)