The Mohammad Asif detention case took a new turn, with the pacer, accused of, and detained, for drug possession, claiming he was implicated following a brawl with officials at Dubai airport.
Express television channel claimed to have spoken to Asif, who is under detention at Dubai airport at the moment. He is believed to have told them that he reached Dubai from Mumbai on Sunday a bit tipsy.
Asif claimed he was a bit drunk and got into an argument with airport officials which led to a brawl, and he slapped one of them.
The channel said the pacer told them that the authorities recovered a small quantity of Shilajit, an ayurvedic medicine to boost strength, in his wallet and charged him with possession of opium.
But when Geo channel spoke to Pakistan Cricket Board Director Human Resources Nadeem Akram, who is in Dubai, he denied having any knowledge of the slapping incident.
"I really don't know because neither Asif nor the local authorities have mentioned about this to me," Akram said.
"Right now he is in detention at the airport and the case will go before the public prosecutor this evening. If it is proved he had a banned illegal contraband item on him, he will be charge-sheeted. But we don't want to jump to conclusions right now," he said.