Young cricketer pursues legal action against Basit Ali over alleged malpractice
A local court in Islamabad on Tuesday summoned Basit Ali, head of the junior selection committee after a 12-year-old cricketer filed a petition accusing Ali of not selecting him for an under-13 tournament even though he fulfilled the selection criteria.
The seventh-grader Sudais Ulfat Sherpao ─ an all-rounder ─ in his petition argued that he had passed the fitness test and cleared the trials held for the under-13 T20 tournament that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is organising for the first time.
However, the boy was later told he had apparently crossed the age limit, which is why he was not selected.
Saudais's father, Ulfatullah Sherpao, while speaking to DawnNews, said that he provided all documented evidence proving his son's age.
"I have provided all required documents to prove Sudais' age. I got a certificate from his school (in Islamabad), but even then they rejected him," Sherpao said, adding that the all-rounder Sudais will turn 13 on May 5.
However, the head of junior selection committee rejected Sudais' allegations, claiming that the young aspirant had failed a "medical test that showed he was indeed above the age of 13".
"I had selected him and placed him on the final list but later I learned that he had failed the medical test, which showed he was above 13 years of age and did not fall in the U-13 category," Ali claimed.
"I will take all legal actions required and prove that I have done everything according to merit," the accused added.