Back to the pavillion

As if in defence, Akram made a public statement that allegations of match-fixing, which are yet to be proved, are affecting Pakistan’s cricket standing internationally. Akram argued that since the allegations are not proven, his country’s cricket board should not “give credence” to them as this would affect the team’s morale.

Akram’s outspokenness may have not only cost him his job as a captain but also a slot in the national side. Majid Khan, a stylish player in his day and a cousin of Imran Khan, is not impressed by Akram’s assertions. Akram led a losing side to the Golden Jubilee Quadrangular in Lahore, his home town. The failure at Sharjah proved to be the last straw.

Many question Majid Khan’s result-oriented selection policy. Four captains Wasim Akram, Rameez Raja, Saeed Anwar, and lately, Rashid Latif — have headed the Pakistan cricket team in quick succession. Majid Khan’s latest choice, Rashid Latif, has also been the source of much criticism himself, having been in the midst of match-fixing allegations some time back. As Pakistan sports writer Khalid Hussain puts it, “Latif is hardly a choice if Wasim Akram is being axed on the same charges.”

Akram, a protege of Imran Khan, is the only bowler in the world who has 300-plus wickets in both Test cricket and one-dayers. Now that he seems to be back in form after an operation on his bowling shoulder, Akram says he is “all fired up” to add significantly to this pile, despite the fact that he is now 31 years old.

Akram has everything that a speedster can possibly aspire for — genuine pace, variety, guile, control and temperament. “Even as a teenager, he had greatness written all over him,” says one colleague. He had yet to appear in a Test when he was being compared to the legendary Australian, Alan Davidson, and Akram confirmed all predictions by becoming the youngest bowler to take 10 wickets in a match in his second Test.

A natural if there ever was one, Akram was quick from the start. When all the fast bowlers in the country were learning the tricks of the trade from Imran Khan, he was the first to master the yorker. That added another dimension to his lethal repertoire, making him virtually unplayable in the slog overs in one-day cricket and getting many wickets in the bargain, including two hat-tricks on Sharjah’s wickets.

Unfortunately, bad luck seemed to intervene. It all began, or so it seemed, when he was named captain soon after Imran Khan abdicated the throne in 1992. Since then, the Pakistan team has deteriorated from a well-knit unit under a powerful Imran Khan, to a bunch of quibbling players, spending more energy fighting each other and the board, than concentrating on the game.

Match-fixing allegations surfaced time and again under Akram’s captaincy.

However, nobody ever linked his name to the practice. The names that surfaced were those of others. However, in 1997, things changed when allegations surfaced that Akram’s father had been kidnapped by bookies after a deal went awry. While there was no independent confirmation of this, Akram rushed back to Lahore and admitted that his family had been “under threat”. Observers say that the pressure on Akram was greatand vested interests may have floated the rumour to harass him.

Arguably, Akram’s greatest strength lay in the fact that he did not give in to the bookies, even as he kept up his fight with the cricket board. The board claims that he is unfit and therefore had to be dropped. Many in the cricket world scoff at this assertion and say that Akram is being “punished for speaking his mind at the inaction of the board over the match-fixing allegations”.

For his part, former cricketer Imran Khan has already commented that he did not think the board had the capability to investigate the allegations. In a veiled attack on cousin Majid Khan, Imran Khan said that this job should be “carried out by professionals”.

Meanwhile, Akram, three times captain of the Pakistan cricket team, sits in the pavillion robbed of both captaincy and a slot that he once took for granted. His periodic outbursts in the media won’t help his cause very much. It only serves to alienate him from the cricket board further. Selectors havedefended their team selection, saying that it has been done on “purely professional lines”.

Akram’s future, from all accounts, depends on two possible developments. One, the sacking of the cricket board’s selection committee if the team does badly in Bangladesh. Two, tremendous public pressure since he enjoys immense popularity in Pakistan — even more than Imran Khan did. However, if the Pakistan team wins in Bangladesh, the biggest loser would ironically be the team itself, since the chances of Akram reappearing on the national side will become even slimmer than they are today.