Bangladesh in Pakistan, 2007-08

Pakistan unhappy with appointment of Procter

April 7, 2008

	Nasim Ashraf: 'This is a wrong impression that Pakistan has no voice in the ICC' © Getty Images

The Pakistan Cricket Board is unhappy with the appointment of Mike Procter for the five-match one-day series against Bangladesh, starting on April 8.

Nasim Ashraf, the PCB chairman, said the board will talk to the International Cricket Council regarding this issue. "I will have our director (cricket operations) speak to his counterpart in the ICC on this issue," Ashraf said.

PCB's reluctance to have Procter be the match referee in Pakistan matches has its origins in the infamous 2006 Oval Test where Australian umpire Darrell Hair's five-run penalty culminated in a forfeiture.

Ashraf did not see Pakistan as a weak member of the ICC even though the world governing body reinstated Hair into its Elite Panel. "This is a wrong impression that Pakistan has no voice in the ICC," he said. "That is not true. Let me tell you in clear words that Hair will not officiate in our matches even though the ICC has reinstated him.

"The ICC allowed Hair back because he had completed a six-month rehabilitation process and all the concerned people gave him good reports for his improvement in man management. Hair has been a top umpire as far as his decisions are concerned, but he was sidelined because of his poor management skills."

© PTI