By Omar Khalid, IANS,
Nairobi : Pakistani cricket officials have launched a probe against two young Pakistani cricketers, currently touring Kenya with the country’s Academy team, who were said to have broke the night-time curfew and partied till late at a local night club.
Pakistan Academy coach Haroon Rashid, who is also the tour manager, said here Friday that he has started an inquiry against promising fast bowler Anwar Ali and talented opening batsman Ahmed Shahzad.
Shahzad and Ali, who represented Pakistan in the Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia earlier this year, were spotted at the New Florida, a popular Nairobi disco, around 1.00 a.m. Friday in spite of a strict night-time curfew that team management claims starts soon after dinner at about 11.00 p.m.
The duo was spotted by a few Pakistani journalists at the disco, known among the locals here as the “Mad House”.
Haroon, a former Pakistan Test cricketer, was ‘shocked’ to know about the boys’ audacious act. He said such conduct from the Academy players was unacceptable and that the team management will take a strict action against the players if found guilty.
“I’m really shocked to know that they were partying so late in the night,” he said.
“It’s a bit unbelievable too because we just arrived in Nairobi at about 11.30 on Thursday night and I thought the boys would have been too tired to venture out, especially because of the fact that we had played a one-day game in Mombasa earlier in the day,” he added.
The disco is located at quite a distance from the hotel where the Pakistani players are staying and Haroon felt that the boys with their breach of discipline also put their own security at risk.
“I’m really upset because they’ve not only violated the code of conduct but also risked being mugged because Nairobi is a dangerous city after dark,” he said.
Haroon said that he has already called a hearing to get the players’ side of the story and added that he would take immediate action once the probe is over.
“We are very, very strict when it comes to maintaining discipline. Such an incident is a severe breach of discipline and the action will be taken,” he said.
If found guilty, the players can be slapped with a fine and suspension for the rest of the games.
Pakistan cricket has been rocked by scandals involving star players like Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif in recent years which is why the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has become very strict when it comes to imposing discipline within the players’ ranks.