'Everyone suspected me' - Shoaib Akhtar recalls the time when he was wrongfully accused of sexual assault

Shoaib Akhtar had some controversies to deal with during his playing days. The fast bowler had to face a lot of criticism as well during his playing days. However, Akhtar was a good person at heart and that can’t be doubted. In a recent interaction with fans, he revealed an incident that could have led to really strict actions being taken on him.

The former pacer recalled that he was accused of rape falsely once because of a teammate. Akhtar, however, didn’t name the individual from the Pakistan team whom he was referring to. The fast bowler revealed that his teammate apparently had some misunderstanding with a girl and the team management hid the news. He also said that he told the board not to reveal the teammate’s name in public.

I asked the board not to reveal the player’s name: Shoaib Akhtar

“I was accused of rape back then. There was some other player from the Pakistan team, who had a misunderstanding with a girl. Pakistan team management hid that player’s doing,” Akhtar said on a Helo live chat. “I asked the board not to reveal the player’s name, just announce that Shoaib was not there. When that case happened, everyone suspected me,” he added.

After the PCB had allegedly cleared Akhtar’s name from the incident. A statement was released by the board to clarify that.

“The PCB wishes to clarify that the decision to recall him was taken in order for him to achieve full fitness in readiness for the India tour,” the board said in a release. “His recall has no connection whatsoever with the uncorroborated and sensationalist reports relating to an incident in Melbourne.”

This incident had taken place during Pakistan‘s tour to Australia in 2004-05. The event unfolded during Pakistan’s stay in Melbourne for the Boxing Day Test match. After that series, Pakistan was going to tour India. The PCB at the time dismissed the case because they didn’t have a formal complaint from anyone.

“Despite the passage of a month, no formal complaint has been lodged either with the police or with the female harassment center against any member of the team,” another press release stated. “In the absence of a formal complaint, there is no legal basis to press further charges.”