- Nasima Akter
Pakistan Captain Gets into a Fight with Security
In the first hour of the third test against England on Monday, Pakistan captain Babar Azam was nowhere to be seen on the field. Babar had done this deliberately and in protest against the intrusive security measures for the Pakistani players and their families.
The reason for Babar’s protest was from an incident that happened on Saturday. He had wanted to go out for dinner with the family and team but were not allowed to leave the team hotel.
At the time of the incident, Babar, plus Sarfaraz Ahmed, Azhar Ali, Shan Masood, and Imam-ul-Haq had meant to go out for dinner but were stopped from going outside by security personnel. They made it clear that Babar and other players had to seek prior clearance about their movements as the teams are under President-level security for the test series.
This resulted in the Pakistan captain getting into a heated argument with senior security personnel, before storming off to the hotel.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has given no response to the incident. They have, however, given an official verdict that stated Babar had a severe headache while going to the ground, which led to his absence for the first hour of the match.
The strict security is a result of it being 17 years since England had toured Pakistan for a test series. While the PCB is leaving no stone unturned to provide maximum security for the players, there are reports of players becoming fed-up with the round-the-clock security around them.
At this time, Pakistan is on the back foot in the third test as England needs 55 runs only to complete the whitewash.
