March 10, 2008	Monday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 1, 1429

LAHORE, March 9: Almost all cricketers who joined the breakaway Indian Cricket League (ICL) and play for their departments are likely to be sacked by their respective employers after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) decided not to allow them to play first-class cricket.

“They are cricketers and useful only if they play for us,” Abdul Raquib, a former spinner and member of the Governing Board and officials of Habib Bank Limited (HBL) told Dawn, while hinting at the possible termination of the cricketers.

“We are following a wait and see policy and no decision has been taken as yet about the future of such players,” he said.

“Five of our players have joined the ICL and we are following the PCB’s instructions by not including them in any of the first-class matches. I admit all five players are useless for HBL but we are following a wait and see policy,” he said.

Though the PCB’s Governing Board had endorsed the policy of banning ICL’s cricketers, there is a report that the issue may resurface in the board’s next meeting, which was moved to March 22 from March 8.

The ICC doesn’t recognise the ICL and all its affiliated cricket boards have adopted this policy of not allowing their cricketers to play first-class cricket.

The affected Pakistani players were to file a legal case against the ban but have delayed it in the hope that political changes in the country might solve their problem outside of court.

Inzamam-ul-Haq, Imran Farhat, Taufiq Umar, Mohammad Sami, Abdul Razzaq, Shabbir Ahmed, Azhar Mahmood, Hasan Raza, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan along with several other Pakistani players have joined the ICL.