Shoaib, Asif's exclusion good riddance for World Cup, says Border

Sydney, Mar 2 (UNI) ''It is a good riddance for the World Cup,'' remarked former Australian skipper Allan Border after dope-tainted pace duo of Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif were excluded from the Pakistan squad for the mega event in the Caribbean.

''Cricket has no place for drug offenders,'' Border was quoted as saying by 'The Australian' newspaper.

''The bottom line here is there is no room for players who take (illegal) drugs in our game.

''Players who have been selected from other teams for what is cricket's biggest tournament are there performing to the best of their ability and on a level playing field,'' he said.

''There has been a cloud hanging over both of them for a good while. It is to be hoped that they are truly injured and that it's not a repeat of their previous (drug) problem.'' Border, however, said he accepted PCB's explanation of the pace duo's exclusion and hope that nothing else comes out later.

''If it was revealed at some later stage they had taken an illegal substance, then the sport doesn't need another black eye. I would feel genuinely sorry for both the two young blokes if that were not the case,'' he added.

UNI