ISLAMABAD, Aug 24: The father of Pakistan cricket captain Inzamam-ul-Haq is praying his son will be cleared when he faces a disciplinary hearing, a newspaper report said on Thursday.Ageing Intizam-ul-Haq, a Muslim spiritual leader, told an Urdu-language daily that his son was innocent of charges of ball tampering and bringing cricket into disrepute.

“I am hopeful that Allah will bring my son successfully out of this crisis,” it quoted Inzamam's father as saying.

“I have made special prayers for my son for the success of my son and for the glory of my nation during the Shab-e-Mairaj,” he said, referring to the Muslim holy day.

Inzamam has been at the centre of a sporting firestorm since Pakistan refused to take to the pitch after tea in the fourth Test against England at the Oval on Sunday.

Their protest was at umpire Darrell Hair's decision to punish them for ball tampering. The Australian official shortly afterwards called the first forfeit in Test history.

An ICC disciplinary hearing into the charges against Inzamam was initially due on Friday but has been postponed because the chosen referee is attending to a family problem in Sri Lanka.

“After this bitter incident every time Inzamam has phoned me it has been the subject of the conversation,” said the master batsman's father, who hails from Multan.

“He has been saying that banning me from playing in matches is not the issue. He said his worry is to cleanse the allegation of ball tampering from his team.”

Intizam said the ball-tampering allegation was “fake”.

He added that he was “extremely grateful” to President Pervez Musharraf for taking his son's side.

Officials said on Monday that the president, who is patron-in-chief of the Pakistan Cricket Board and an avid fan of the game, had phoned Inzamam to offer his support.—AFP