Woolmer denies rift

Bob Woolmer, the Pakistan coach, has dismissed as "baseless" reports in a leading British newspaper that there was a rift between him and Inzamam-ul-Haq, the Pakistan captain. And though he admitted he had considered resigning in the immediate aftermath of the Oval Test, he told Cricinfo that "was no longer the case."

Woolmer was reacting to a report in The Daily Telegraph which alleged that not only was he on the verge of resignation, but also that "Woolmer's relations with Zaheer and captain Inzamam-ul-Haq have descended into acrimony," since the chaos that enveloped the Oval on Sunday.

"I won't deny that I considered resigning and I did very seriously," Woolmer said. "I enjoy coaching cricket and I missed that over the last few days. I am very unhappy about the general situation as well, but as far as resigning is concerned, that is no longer the case."

Since the forfeit, all manner of rumours, speculation, allegations and contradictions have emerged from the Pakistan camp. Woolmer denied at least one - that there was a rift with Inzamam. "Inzi and I are absolutely fine. We have had misunderstandings in the past and we had a sort of misunderstanding on Sunday. Until I have a complete grasp of the Urdu language these things may occur but as things stand now, we are fine. We are getting on well and want to do whatever we can for Pakistan cricket."

It is yet to emerge what exactly occurred during and after the tea break on the fourth day of the Test. Reports suggest that a few options were discussed as to a course of action, including protesting on the field or going back to the hotel. Woolmer refused to comment though he stressed "it wasn't a confused and angry place as is suggested. I was 100% behind Inzamam and the team though and supported whatever decision they took. Advice was offered but in the end we all supported Inzamam's stand absolutely. I am the coach and my job is to offer support to him - whatever decision he would've taken I would have supported him."

Too many questions, however, remain unanswered. With growing suspicion and criticism in Pakistan that their board has bungled their way through this crisis, the questions will keep coming until exactly what happened that day becomes clear.