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| June 20, 2003 | Friday | Rabi-us-Sani 19, 1424 |
There is still room for Inzamam, says Imran
LAHORE, June 19: Cricket legend Imran Khan has said that Pakistan need to improve their batting with a place still vacant for Inzamam-ul-Haq.
Replying to a question after visiting Gaddafi Stadium on Thursday, the former Pakistan captain said that the team would face pressure in the batting department and therefore, immediately needed a seasoned batsman like Inzamam.
Imran admitted that although Inzamam had been out of form but still there was a room for him in the team because he was a class act.
Welcoming the introduction of inter-regional cricket in the domestic structure, Imran said that it augurs well and should continue for ever. He said that there was no concept of departmental cricket around the world and added that the departments had damaged the country’s cricket.
When asked that there was a rival argument in favour of the departmental cricket and Imran misunderstood problems of needy cricketers, he said that those persons had vested interest. They had been cementing their jobs.
“If you want to produce Test calibre cricketers you have to promote the cricket at regional level. And if you want to only create jobs for needy cricketers and function like an employment exchange so promote the departmental cricket,” Imran replied.
He also alleged that betting on the cricket matches was also being encouraged by the departmental teams which had ruined the game.
Imran claimed that the regional cricket would prove crowd- puller which the departmental cricket had failed to do and believed that a sound domestic cricket structure was necessary to polish the talented player who were available in the country.
He said that many talented cricketers had been wasted due to bad domestic structure.
For example he said that Azhar Mahmood had been spoiled by the domestic cricket but now after playing in rthe English county his talent was emerging.
Earlier while giving a lecture to students of the clinic, Imran said that the cricket was the game of the brave persons.
“Those batsmen who fear to face any fast bowler and those bowlers who also avoid to face any particular batsman can not become a world class cricketer. Fight till the last moment and don’t accept defeat at any cost. After losing to any side come again with same fighting spirit without taking any pressure,” Imran advised the students.
Meanwhile, Imran has said that the rules regarding the ball tampering and chucking adopted by the International Cricket Council (ICC) need rectification.
He said that if followed according to the interpretation of the ICC rules regarding the ball tampering, all bowlers were involved in it.
He remarked that according to rule, all acts of the bowler except of giving shine to the ball, fell in the ball tampering.
“If a bowler cut a damaged piece of leather from the ball or a string from the seam the act falls in the ball tampering which is wrong,” Imran elaborated.
The former paceman said that he wrote in his book that he was also involved in the ball tampering if accepted this interpretation of the rule.
Imran said that he also won his case against former England all-rounder Ian Botham about ball tampering.
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