MULTAN: Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq, vice-captain Yousuf Youhana and fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar had initially told the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) that they did not want to play the Test series against India following accusations that the fourth One-Day International at Lahore had been “fixed.”
Pakistan team sources told The News that the three senior players were very upset over the match-fixing allegations that surfaced after a local news agency misquoted former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif.
“When the story appeared after the match, three of the players were very upset and informed the manager Haroon Rasheed that they would not play in the Test series unless the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) took some action against the people making the allegations without any evidence,” said a source.
“The players were already fed up with the constant allegations made by former Pakistan bowler Sarfaraz Nawaz before the series started and lost their cool,” the source said.
He said the players then spoke to PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan who "made them see sense and how their reputations would suffer if they refused to play in the Tests against India ".
“He assured them that he would sort out the matter soon and a permanent protocol would be placed in the Board’s legal system where anyone making any match-fixing allegations would be sued if he went to the press directly without any substantial or circumstantial evidence,” he informed.
“Shaharyar told them he would be speaking to Rashid on the subject and if the former captain didn’t retract his statement, disciplinary action would be taken against him.”
Shaharyar had described Rashid’s statement on the match as “shameful” and “unpatriotic”. The wicketkeeper later clarified his position in a letter to the board.
ISLAMABAD: Allegations of “match-fixing” are gaining ground here, with many accusing the government of forcing the Pakistani team to throw away the one-day series that India won 3-2.
“It’s beyond doubt that Pakistan in an act of showing courtesy helped India win the series,” an MP, who said he would rather not be identified, told IANS.
“You can imagine what the reaction would have been if India had lost the matches in Pakistan. It could have led the Indian public to demand that no more cricket be played with Pakistan.”
He was convinced that the last two one-day matches in Lahore were thrown away.
On Tuesday, the third day of the first Test match, District Coordination Officer (DCO) Ejaz Chaudhry left a packed press box stunned when he said that public perceptions about the Pakistan and India series were that it was a “fixed” one and “that was the reason for the low crowd turnout in the match.”
If I was Shehryar Khan, I would have kicked them out of the door myself after their 'threat'. This is exactly the bane of Pakistan Cricket. We take too much crap from these superstars. The big guys at the helm should have the balls to let everyone know that nobody is indispensable. If you do not want to play for something an idiot said then you probably are not committed enough for the country anyway.
"When the story appeared after the match, three of the players were very upset and informed the manager Haroon Rasheed that they would not play in the Test series **unless the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) took some action against the people making the allegations without any evidence,"* said a source. *
Well done Inzi, Yoyo and Shoaib. It's a shame that it took such drastic action to make the PCB take some action against people chucking around dangerous statements without any proof.