April 18, 2008	Friday	Rabi-us-Sani 11, 1429

MULTAN, April 17: Security officials posted at the Multan cricket stadium on Wednesday for the fourth ODI between Pakistan and Bangladesh evicted a man trying to enter the host team’s dressing room while posing as senior batsman Mohammad Yousuf.

Mohammad Shafiq, belonging to a local village near Multan, posed as Yousuf lookalike at the stadium, styling himself as the renowned batsman with the same flowing beard and cap.

He had earlier harassed the security officials when Zimbabwe played against Pakistan in Multan earlier this year.

On Wednesday, when Yousuf was on the field, Shafiq managed to break through several security cordons and was about to enter the Pakistan dressing room when a security official stopped him by restraining him then and there.

Although the police didn’t press any charges against Shafiq, he was immediately evicted from the stadium for creating disturbance. The villager, however, not willing to give up again entered an enclosure with a valid ticket.

His presence in the enclosure again led many to believe that Yousuf was between them before he was again forced to leave the stadium by the security personnel.

Shafiq later lodged a strong protest over the treatment. “Okay so I might not be the real Mohammad Yousuf, but I have a valid ticket and I have every right to watch the match,” he told reporters. “I had no bad or dangerous intention and was just trying to get near the dressing room to have a glimpse of the players,” he stated.—Agencies