Allegations against Arthur made 'in the heat of the moment', Akmal tells PCB
Middle-order batsman Umar Akmal ─ back in the spotlight recently after he levelled serious allegations against head coach Mickey Arthur ─ responded to a show-cause notice issued against him by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), claiming his actions were impulsive and unintentional.
The flamboyant right-hander last month claimed Arthur had "used abusive words" against him.
“Arthur also admonished me as to who allowed me to enter the National Cricket Academy (NCA). He told me that it was better for me to play club cricket instead of doing practice at the NCA," he added.
Explore: Umar Akmal back in the spotlight, hurls allegations at Mickey Arthur
Arthur, however, brushed aside Akmal's allegations and denied that he had abused the batsman. He confirmed, however, that he had chastised Akmal for using facilities at the NCA since he was not under a PCB contract any longer.
“He needs to prove himself before he uses our support staff,” the South Africa-born head coach added.
Subsequently, Akmal was served a show-cause notice for violating clauses 2.25, 4.1 and 4.4 of the PCB's code of conduct.
Read more: Mickey Arthur refutes Umar Akmal's abuse claims
Under these clauses, a player who signs a central contract of the PCB cannot speak to the media, give an interview or issue a statement without prior permission from the board. The code also bars a player from issuing statement against the team management.
Although Akmal is currently not on the contract, it is binding to signatories up to one year after expiry of the contract.
In his written response to the notice, the batsman claimed that he was unaware of the said clauses. He explained his behaviour by saying whatever he did was "due to the heat of the movement."
"It was happened unintentionally," he added.