Akhtar ‘utterly disappointed’ after receiving Rs.100m defamation notice from PTV

Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar was “utterly disappointed” after receiving a legal notice from the Pakistan Television (PTV) for breaching his contract.   

Akhtar was served an Rs.100 million defamation notice due to the loss incurred by the state-owned television, after his appearance on an India television channel in Dubai.

“After miserably failing to safeguard my respect and repute while I was working for PTV, they have now sent me a Recovery Notice. I am a fighter and will not give up and fight this legal battle,” tweeted Akhtar while also naming his lawyer.

Utterly Disappointed. After miserably failing to safeguard my respect & repute while i was working for PTV, they have now sent me a Recovery Notice. I am a fighter & will not give up & fight this legal battle. My lawyer @SalmanKNiazi1 will take this forward according to law.

— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) November 7, 2021

It must be noted that in a post-match show, after Pakistan’s win over New Zealand, Akhtar and PTV show “Game On Hai” host Dr. Nauman Niaz were involved in a verbal spat while discussing the impact of Lahore Qalandars’ Player Development Program (PDP) on pacers Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf’s performance.

“You’re being a little rude and I don’t want to say this: but if you’re being over smart, you can go. I am saying this on air,” Niaz told Akhtar before switching to a commercial break.

Shoaib and Niaz remained on air after the break but the former eventually decided to leave the show after apologising to the other guests, which included cricket greats like Sir Viv Richards and David Gower.

Few days later, Niaz expressed regret over his behaviour while stating that he “can apologise not only once but a million times”.