Ex-cricketers from Pakistan demand action against Virat Kohli

Former Pakistan cricketers have demanded the ICC to penalise the Indian Test skipper Virat Kohli for the ‘ball tampering allegations which surfaced after Kohli was seen polishing the ball with mint in his mouth.

After the ‘mintgate’ row involving South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis in which he was found guilty of ball-tempering, a British tabloid had yesterday accused that some footages of the Rajkot Test indicated that Kohli appeared to shine the ball using residue from a sweet.

But, the as per the rules, action against Kohli cannot be taken as no complaint was made by the match officials inside five days of the incidents. Therefore, the ICC, under any circumstances, cannot take any sort of action again Kohli.

Calling for a fine against the Indian batting mainstay, former Pakistan leg-spinner Abdul Qadir said if the ICC doesn’t take any action against Kohli then all the member cricket boards should pressurise it to take action against Kohli.

“He should also be fined. The ICC should ensure that the rules are same for everybody,” Qadir was quoted as saying by the Express Tribune.

Qadir further accused the ICC of being biased towards the Indian players. “When it comes to ban a Pakistani player on bowling action or other things, the ICC steps in promptly and puts a ban. But in case of an Indian player, it backs out,” argued Qadir.

Echoing similar views, former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Khalid Mahmood insisted the ICC behaves completely different whenever an Indian player is found involved in some wrong-doings. “We don’t see a application of the same rules for India. The ICC always treats India differently. Such an attitude is harmful for the game of cricket,” he said. Mahmood further stressed that the match referee and field umpires present during the Test should also be banned over the fact that such an incident went unnoticed.

Meanwhile, former Test cricketer and chief selector Haroon Rasheed also pointed out that while du Plessis was reported by the umpires, the authorities are keeping mum in Kohli’s case.

While the Pakistan players are demanding a punishment for the Indian all-rounder, the England team have not filed any complaint and have also declined to comment on the issue.

As per the ICC regulations on ball tampering, if a team wants to lodge a complaint about ball tampering by a rival team or its player; it has to be done within five days of the completion of the Test match. It should be noted that the Rajkot Test ended on November 13 and if the Alastair Cook-led side had any complaints, they should have made it official by November 18.

Earlier, the ICC had said that the allegations of ball tampering levelled against the Indian Test skipper by a British tabloid did not hold much ground as per the specific clauses in the cricket governing body’s Rules and Regulations about playing conditions.