Dejected Wasim shies away from
comments on captaincy, appeal in court
By Waheed Khan
KARACHI: A disappointed Wasim Akram on Saturday refused to give any statement to a number of sports scribes who called him up in Lahore soon after he returned from South Africa.
Initially, he was not available on phone as he was taking a nap, his family members said but by the time he did speak to the journalists, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had confirmed Waqar Younis would continue as captain for the World Cup.
And when he came on the phone, one could sense the disappointment in his voice as he said he would speak on the issue of his appeal against the sanctions imposed on him by a match-fixing inquiry commission after talking to his lawyers.
“Let me talk to my lawyers. I will speak to you guys on Monday. I don’t want to say anything on any issue now,” the 36-year-old said in a dejected tone.
In recent days there had been number of stories in the media about Wasim confirming he would be appealing against the fine and a sanction imposed on him by the cricket board on the recommendations of the Justice Malik Qayyum Commission two and half years ago.
The suggestions were that he was going in for the appeal because he had been asked by the Board Chairman to get prepared to lead the side in the World Cup.
Wasim himself confirmed this in two interviews that originated from Cape Town and were carried by the two leading English dailies.
He confirmed that he only decided to take up the appeal after getting a clue from the Board and that he would love to lead side in the World Cup if the Board asked him to do so.
This was a clear deviation from his earlier statement that he was not hungry for captaincy and that he was only planning to appeal the sanctions against him as he wanted his name cleared before retirment.
So what happened in a few days time that prompted Lt. General Tauqir Zia to suddenly confirm Waqar as the World Cup captain?
It is confirmed that everything had been put in place to reinstate Wasim as captain and the Chairman was even prepared to take head on any backlash from the international media.
Sources in the Board say it was the interview that Wasim gave in Cape Town and in which he made digs at Waqar’s captaincy that was the flash point and upset Tauqir a lot. It made him realize that Wasim was not being fair at all.
“The Chairman was upset because while there was a lot of media speculation about Wasim being made captain, everything had been kept under wraps by the Board who wanted to make the announcement at their own convenience,” a source said.
“Wasim’s clear indication that he was being set up for the captaincy at a time when the team was losing in South Africa and his insinuations that Waqar did not respect the players did not please Tauqir at all,” the source stated.
The source stated that Tauqir Zia despite not being very happy with Waqar’s captaincy in recent months, nonetheless regarded him a lot for trying hard and doing his best as captain at a time when the team was really down.
“It was the interview which spoiled the show for Wasim,” the source concluded. Wasim for his part now claims that he never gave the interview and, in fact, he was having an off-the-record conversation with the journalists.
But even if this argument is accepted, it shows that privately Wasim was very keen to dislodge Waqar as captain.
A second reason quoted by Board sources is the feedback the General got from South Africa from the team coach Richard Pybus and batting consultant Hanif Muhammad on where Waqar stood as captain in the eyes of the players and the implications of reinstating Wasim as captain.
“It was the captaincy which was the main issue for the Board. Because finalizing the 15-member World Cup squad is not a problem for them with Waqar Younis confirmed in the saddle now,” the source confided.
“Waqar and Coach Richard Pybus have had discussions with the General and the chief selector Wasim Bari and the World Cup squad is all but final, they are just waiting for a final word on the fitness of all-rounder Azhar Mehmood,” the source informed. Azhar is in England, getting treatment for a shoulder injury.
“It is no secret that if Wasim had been made captain he would have made changes in the team. But Waqar with the consent of Richard Pybus has his own team in mind. So the final squad is not a problem at all.”
Certainly, with Waqar now confirmed as captain, Saeed Anwar, Saleem Elahi, Inzamamul Haq, Yousaf Youhana, Younis Khan, Rashid Latif, Abdul Razzaq, Azhar Mehmood (if fit), Saqlain Mushtaq, Shoaib Akhtar, Muhammad Sami and Shahid Afridi are all confirmed selections, according to sources.
Then count the two W’s and basically it is just a question of one spot being open for grab in the World Cup squad. So when the World Cup squad is announced on December 31, the team should contain no surprises.
“Yes there would have been surprises if Wasim had made a comeback as captain. But now that issue is dead,” said the source
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