RAWALPINDI, April 16: Reports of disharmony in the Pakistan camp became all the more evident on Friday after captain Inzamamul Haq expressed surprise over the way an apparently injured Shoaib Akhtar had batted on the fourth day of the third and final Test.
"The way he was hitting out came as a surprise to me," Inzamam said as Pakistan were handed an innings and 131-run defeat by India at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
Shoaib, who did not come on to bowl on the third day after apparently sustaining a rib injury, smashed four boundaries and two mighty sixes in scoring a quick fire 28 off only 14 balls. His big hits quickly led to suspicion that the pace king may have been faking his injury he seemingly suffered on the second day of the Test.
Shaharyar M. Khan, chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), clarified that Shoaib's injury was real. "I went to see him and he looked in great pain. He told me he wanted to be part of Thursday's action but the injury was hurting him." Shoaib said that he was not unfit but had he bowled a long spell on the third day, he would go down for a longer period.
The first signs that all was not well with the Pakistan team came just days before the Rawalpindi Test when team trainer Dr Tauseef Razzak quit the squad following a tiff with Inzamam.
On Thursday he tendered his resignation citing interference by team officials and claimed that injuries to key bowlers Umar Gul and Shabbir Ahmed could have been prevented if they had not been asked to bowl excessively at the nets by the management.
But Shaharyar, who confirmed that Tauseef had resigned, said that before a Test match the responsibility of handling the players laid not with the trainer but with the team captain, coach and the manager. Both Umar, who had a back problem, and Shabbir whose shin injury had forced him to miss the second Test, were not available for the Rawalpindi game.
