Pak government backs cricket team, Inzy

KARACHI: The beleaguered Pakistan cricket team and captain Inzamam-ul-Haq on Thursday received much needed morale booster with the government backing them in the raging ball tampering controversy during the forfeited fourth Test against England last week.

"Pakistan government and the people of Pakistan are fully behind the team and Inzamam-ul-Haq as we believe Darrell Hair's decisions were incorrect and biased," Sports Minister Mian Shamim Haider told the National Assembly.

Inzamam faced a ban of up to eight one-dayers or four Tests for bringing the game into disrepute when he did not take his side out to the field after tea following Australian umpire Hair's penalising the team five runs for ball tampering on the fourth day of the match.

Pakistan thus became the first team in the history of the game to forfeit a Test.

Haider said the government supports Inzamam's decision not to take the team out to field in protest against Hair's ball tampering charges and penalising Pakistan five runs on the fourth day of the Test against England.

"Darrell Hair did not warn the captain nor did he prove the ball tampering charges. The cricket team has hired the services of a reputed law firm and all efforts would be made to exonerate the team of ball tampering charges," Haider told the Assembly.

Haider's statement on the Assembly floor is the first government reaction although President Pervez Musharraf had talked to the team management at The Oval during the crisis.