Controversial fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar's [Images] international career virtually came to an end after an appellate tribunal, on Wednesday, upheld the five-year ban imposed on him.

It, however, said he can play in the cash-rich Indian Premier League.

The appellate tribunal, in its interim ruling, said Akhtar cannot play any match in or for Pakistan, but allowed him the liberty to play anywhere else in the world.

Justice (retd) Aftab Farrukh, heading the appellate tribunal, said the ban will stay because Shoaib did not try to reform himself.

"Basically he has not tried to reform himself and has continued to violate discipline. That is the view of the tribunal, so the ban stays," he told reporters in Lahore [Images].

"This is also the order of the disciplinary committee of the Board that he can't play for or anywhere in Pakistan domestically or internationally. But there is no bar on him playing anywhere else in the world," Farrukh added.

Farrukh said the tribunal had taken the decision in view of the unconditional apology submitted by Shoaib on Monday to the nation, his team and the Board for his actions.

He said the tribunal will resume proceedings against the overall ban in June.

Akhtar had appealed against the five-year ban, imposed on him by the Pakistan Cricket Board for breaching the players' code of conduct after he criticized the Board in media when he was already in the probation period.

The interim order basically appears to be a move to allow him to play in the Indian Premier League.

But the million dollar question is that whether the IPL will allow him to play in their League because earlier also their stance was clear that they wouldn't allow a banned player to play in their league. And the tribunal has not lifted the ban.

Farrukh also criticised Shoaib for the irreparable harm he had done to Pakistan cricket, his teammates and the trust of the nation.

Chronology of disciplinary action against Shoaib Akhtar:

September 1997: Dropped from Pakistan one-day squad for a series in Toronto on the basis of tour manager's report of an earlier visit to England [Images] [Images] by the A team

December 1999: Banned for illegal bowling action

February 2000: Banned for a test and fined 50,000 rupees ($1,800) after breaching players' code of conduct on tour of Australia

January 2001: Banned for illegal bowling action for a second time

November 2002: Fined 50 percent of match fee, banned for one one-day international for throwing a bottle into crowd during a test in Zimbabwe

December 2002: Suspended one-test ban for ball tampering

May 2003: Banned for two ODIs and fined 75 percent of match fee for ball tampering during a tri-series match in Sri Lanka [Images] [Images]

October 2003: Banned for one test and two ODIs for using obscene and offensive language towards South African Paul Adams in Lahore [Images] test

December 2004: Fined 40 percent of match fee for taunting batsman during test in Australia

January 2005: Fined 25 percent of match fee for excessive appealing in ODI in Australia

October 2006: Banned for two years for testing positive for nandrolone. Ban lifted on appeal two months later

August 2007: Fined $5,000 for leaving training camp without permission. Fine suspended on appeal.

October 2007: Banned for 13 international matches and fined 3.4 million rupees ($120,300) for four breaches of discipline including striking team mate Mohammad Asif [Images] [Images] with a bat before Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa. Also put on two-year probation.

April 2008: Banned for five years by PCB for violating code of conduct while under probation period.