Former cricket players are shocked by the development surrounding Salman Butt’s appointment to the men’s national selection committee. Butt was found guilty of spot-fixing in 2010 and banned from the game. Thus, this has caused controversy, according to a story in The News that was published on Saturday.
Sarfraz Nawaz says move will have a far-reaching impact
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) unexpectedly revealed on Friday that Wahab Riaz, the chief selector, has hired Salman Butt, Rao Iftikhar Anjum, and former international cricket player Kamran Akmal as “consultants.” Melbourne hero Sarfraz Nawaz expressed his complete surprise, stating that such appointments would return national cricket to the days of widespread match-fixing.
The former fast bowler for Australia claimed that upon reading the PCB handout, he was astounded by what he saw. Plus, he claimed that many clean players in the league, including Shoaib Muhammad, Muhammad Sami, and numerous others, had they been included in the selection panel, could have had a significant impact.
Additionally, Sarfraz told Mohammad Hafeez to immediately step down from his position as coaching director. Because he had previously stated that he would never work with dishonest individuals in a board setting.
Official Statement
“All my life I have been fighting against this menace and had to shift to England under growing life threats from the mafia. When I came to know that the PCB is making no difference in clean and tainted players, I was shocked.”
“Why were these even considered for any post under the present regime? I am seriously thinking of writing a letter to PCB Management Committee chairman Zaka Ashraf highlighting the issue which will bring a bad name to Pakistan cricket,” Nawaz lamented.
“This is not an ordinary decision but one with far-reaching implications. Also, it is something serious. Look for what these tainted cricketers are there to help the chief selector pick talented players for future international commitments. I fear such a practice would leave a bad image of the country’s cricket. That should not have happened. Unfortunately, tainted players were included on the panel. It is also against the NA/Senate Committee findings and recommendations.”
