Lateef Jafri: Has Aamir Sohail case been really closed? (14 July 1997)

14 July 1997

Has Aamir Sohail case been really closed?

By Lateef Jafri

THE recall from wilderness of Aamir Sohail has apparently been made by the cricket board to strengthen the national squad for the Asia Cup, which gets going in Colombo today. He is a recognized opening batsman - a hard-hitting stroke-player - and a left-arm spinner useful for the turning wickets which may surprise any batsman with his flight and break. The above is purely a technical and cricket explanation of his selection and all experts will agree that an established all-rounder, especially whose exploits are quite known in competitive matches, was needed for the team, not raw hands for experimental purposes.

However, many observers and enthusiasts of cricket are of the opinion that Sohail's induction into the team, when he had not played any cricket for the last six months, was not entirely due to the requirement of the regional competition but perhaps to meet the demands of the federal Government and the fans in general. A day before the selection committee meeting he had paid the fine of Rs 50,000 imposed by the board for violating its Code of Conduct by giving an interview to a newspaper. The other lingering case was the allegation leveled against some team-mates of match-fixing and betting. The disciplinary panel of the PCB had not cleared him of the charge, which in the members' view was bound to affect the overall morale and ordered behaviour of the lineup in international duels.

Sohail had yet to face the questioning of the board committee. The members wanted solid and documentary evidence from Aamir Sohail. He appeared before the committee for about 70 minutes and according to media rapports the cricketer could not substantiate the allegations to the total satisfaction of the PCB panel. The documents were submitted, the queries were put to him but Talat Ali, the chief of the panel, thought that the clarifications did not go to the extent of proving that some members of the team were in the habit of indulging in bribery for throwing away the matches or to use a light term were engaging themselves in betting. If Aamir Sohail could not provide the necessary papers against the accused cricketers why he was let off and included in the mainstream side?

The Talat Ali Committee may presumably have given an adverse report. The two-year ban would then have been re-imposed. But perhaps the board was fearful of the Federal Government's sword of Damocles and the Chief Executive and the Chairman did not press the issue and believing that discretion is the better part of valor advised the Executive Council to close the matter. Will the issue again raise its ugly head? No, say the board officials. Yes, presume the observers of cricket affairs. The board council at its July 6 meeting at the cricket headquarters in Lahore gave approval to the constitution of a four-member committee with Justice Ijaz Yousuf as convener to go into any sort of allegation against cricketers and charges relating to match-fixing and betting in future.

Will the report earlier submitted to the PCB and the verdict given by Justice (Retd) Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim on the charges leveled by Australians Tim May, Shane Warne and Mark Waugh be open to review by the new probe body. Justice Ebrahim, one of top lawyers of the country and a former member of the higher judiciary, had spurned the viewpoints of the Australians, even though the signed statements were dispatched from far-off West Indies where their team was touring. The Chairman of the Ad hoc committee had vetted the papers at Lord's and was shocked over the alleged happening, especially the offer of bribery by Salim Malik, captain of the Pakistan squad during the duels against the Australians in Pakistan (September-November 1994). Justice Ebrahim had gone through the papers submitted by the board in detail. He wanted the Australians to come over to Pakistan for questioning. The Aussies, busy in the cricket schedule were unable to accede to his demand. The result was an 'ex-parte' report. No doubt he exonerated the senior Pakistan cricketer. But many take the decision with a pinch of salt. Can the Ebrahim report be considered as absolutely fair?

The observers of the game would want the evils like match-fixing and bribery to be eliminated from the Pakistani cricket if it is admitted that betting is now a world phenomenon. It actually started from the earliest days of cricket when the game was a village pastime. Even during the popular Pentangular matches of Bombay there was open betting. However, fixed matches are intolerable and steps have to be taken to get rid of them.

Many followers of the game have taken interest in the Indian board's example of appointing a former Chief Justice of their country, Y.V. Chandrachud, to investigate the bribery and match-fixing charges aired by former Test all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar. "The board will not spare anyone found guilty of match-fixing," said Jagmohan Dalmiya, former Secretary of the Indian board, now heading the International Cricket Council at Lord's. Most of the former Test stars welcomed the BCCI move with the comment: "It is definitely a positive action from the board. The sooner the allegations are proved one way or the other the better." The Aamir Sohail case was linked to the selection of the team. At least he has got the chance again in the team. Cricket fans expect the Saeed Anwar-Aamir Sohail combination to rise to the occasion again in the Asia Cup. The side has depth in batting. But can the bowling too prove equal to the onerous task in Colombo? Much can be expected from experienced pacer Aqib Javed as also from Saqlain Mushtaq, who has established himself as a world-class off-spinner. It will be a hard job for Shahid Nazir and Kabir Khan, the other seamers.

Sri Lanka, the world champions, should be the favourites on their own grounds. They have proved their all-round strength in recent tournaments. India too cannot be taken lightly with the return to the squad of former captain Azharuddin, though skipper Sachin Tendulkar is complaining of selection of a weak conglomerate. All lovers of Pakistan cricket wish that its team is resilient enough to put up a better performance than in the earlier edition of Asia Cup in Sharjah (April 1995).

Source:: Dawn (https://dawn.com/)