Pakistan raise Hair issue

31 October 2006

Darrell Hair © Getty Images

The International Cricket Council confirmed they have received a letter from the Pakistan Cricket Board urging them to hold an inquiry into umpire Darrell Hair’s conduct during the Brit Oval Test against England.

The ICC had planned to discuss the aborted Test - the first in history to be forfeited - at their board meeting in Mumbai on Friday.

A spokesman for the world governing body acknowledged the PCB’s letter has been received.

He added: “The whole situation of the Oval Test is on the agenda anyway for the board meeting - as you might expect, given it is the first such thing to happen in a Test match. This (letter) does not materially change that.”

This week’s get-together is the ICC’s first opportunity to discuss the matter, following the cancellation last month of a hastily arranged emergency meeting which was originally designed for that purpose.

Pakistan were deemed by Hair and his colleague Billy Doctrove to have forfeited the match when they refused to return to the field after being penalised five runs for ball-tampering.

A subsequent ICC hearing found Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq guilty of bringing cricket into disrepute but not of ball-tampering.

Pakistan have since refused to play any matches officiated by Hair, who controversially offered his resignation to the ICC in exchange for US$500,000.