Haider reverses his plans to retire
Source: Agencies |
May 13, 2011, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
FIVE months after announcing his retirement, Pakistan wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider has reversed his decision saying he is available to play at every level.
"I have decided to take back my retirement decision in national interest and also because I want to revive my career," Haider told reporters in Lahore.
Zulqarnain fled Pakistan's team hotel in Dubai last November during a one-day series against South Africa claiming he had received death threats for refusing to take part in match fixing. He announced his retirement after arriving in London where he applied for asylum in Britain. However, he returned to Pakistan late last month after being assured by the Pakistan's interior minister Rehman Malik that he would be safe.
The 25-year-old said he had since spoken to friends and family members and decided to come out of retirement. "The situation is also different now from when I went to London," he said. "I want to play cricket again and now it is up to the cricket board to decide when to clear me."
Zulqarnain has yet to meet with Pakistan Cricket Board officials who terminated his contract soon after he fled the team hotel and also held back his match fees. Soon after he returned home police busted a gang of bookmakers in Sialkot who were behind the death threats to the wicketkeeper who made his test debut last year in England, scoring 88 at Edgbaston.
Meanwhile, player power in Pakistan had damaged team spirit but board chairman Ijaz Butt said he had crushed it.
"Let me assure you that players' power, though present in the past, does not exist in the national team at the moment as I have taken severe actions to eradicate it," Butt told Dawn newspaper.
"To crush player power I penalized even prominent players like Younis Khan, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik and Kamran Akmal without showing any reluctance, which in the past had damaged the team spirit."
"I have decided to take back my retirement decision in national interest and also because I want to revive my career," Haider told reporters in Lahore.
Zulqarnain fled Pakistan's team hotel in Dubai last November during a one-day series against South Africa claiming he had received death threats for refusing to take part in match fixing. He announced his retirement after arriving in London where he applied for asylum in Britain. However, he returned to Pakistan late last month after being assured by the Pakistan's interior minister Rehman Malik that he would be safe.
The 25-year-old said he had since spoken to friends and family members and decided to come out of retirement. "The situation is also different now from when I went to London," he said. "I want to play cricket again and now it is up to the cricket board to decide when to clear me."
Zulqarnain has yet to meet with Pakistan Cricket Board officials who terminated his contract soon after he fled the team hotel and also held back his match fees. Soon after he returned home police busted a gang of bookmakers in Sialkot who were behind the death threats to the wicketkeeper who made his test debut last year in England, scoring 88 at Edgbaston.
Meanwhile, player power in Pakistan had damaged team spirit but board chairman Ijaz Butt said he had crushed it.
"Let me assure you that players' power, though present in the past, does not exist in the national team at the moment as I have taken severe actions to eradicate it," Butt told Dawn newspaper.
"To crush player power I penalized even prominent players like Younis Khan, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik and Kamran Akmal without showing any reluctance, which in the past had damaged the team spirit."
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