Islamabad
Batting Legend Javed Miandad, reacting over three-year ban imposed on Umar Akmal in violation of match-fixing code, said he had earlier warned Lahore-born cricketer to mend his ways but he paid no heed to his advice.
“Umar is a very talented cricketer and Allah gave him everything. I warned Umar earlier but he did not mend his ways and now he’s banned for three years. I sensed this thing before,” he said on his YouTube channel.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Monday banned Umar Akmal from all cricket for three years for not reporting a fixing offer before the start of the fifth edition of the Pakistan Super League, a crime under the board’s anti-corruption code.
“Why didn’t you (Umar) report it before. If you had reported such incident before then the result might have been different,” he said.
Miandad, who scored 8,832 runs in 124 Tests, also advised the upcoming cricketers to stay away from any wrongdoings. “There is delay in Allah’s house but not darkness. Whatever you do will be judged in this world and beyond,” he said.
Miandad, who scored 7,381 runs in 233 ODIs, said the International Cricket Council (ICC) has clear rules in place for such incidents which says that if a player was offered bribery or anything like that then he has to report it.
“Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) must strictly tell players of the trouble they can get themselves into, for any wrong practices,” he said.
Miandad, who coached the Pakistan team on separate occasions in 1998, 2000 and 2003, urged players to play honorably and honestly for the country. “Players must remember that what they are today is just because of Pakistan,” he said. The Legendary Batsman said he regarded late former leg spinner Abdul Qadir as his brother and cared about his family.
Umar, who is the son in law of late Qadir had scored 1,003; 3,194 and 1,690 runs in 16 Tests, 121 ODIs and 84 Twenty20s, respectively.—APP
