Pakistan fast bowler Umar Gul has claimed that his comments about ball tampering were misconstrued by the media. Gul’s statement comes after reports that he accused England fast bowlers James Anderson and Stuart Broad of ball tampering last year. “I was asked to respond generally to Shoaib Akhtar’s recently made statement on ball tampering. I clarified that the term ball tampering is often misused,” Gul was quoted as saying. “I was explaining that the ball gets scratched when it is thrown against the rough surface or hits the advertisement boards along the boundary rope. In this manner, I said, every bowler can be accused of doing it,” he added. Gul had earlier said that he had seen Anderson tamper with the ball during the Pakistan-England Test series in England last year, while Broad during the Ashes series. “I saw Anderson do it last year when we went to England. Then in the Ashes series Broad was seen roughing up the ball with his boots. All these methods are part and parcel of the game to obtain reverse swing with the old ball,” said Gul.
