Some of the members of the Pakistan team have revolted against the team manager Naveed Akram Cheema for supporting a group of players while applying harsh rules of the code of conduct on other members of the team and giving free hand to his close allied players.
Reports attributing from the team sources say that it has also developed infighting in the team and promoting groupings that has also cost Pakistan early exit from the ICC Champions Trophy. Sources said that some of the senior members were kept in constant vigilance while the juniors were kept under pressure and the players who are close to the manager were getting lenient hand.
The revolt within the team ranks has developed at a time when Pakistan is about to take on India in its final league match of the Champions Trophy. Although the bearing of the result has no bearing in the trophy but fans around the globe consider Pakistan’s win against India as the team winning the trophy.
Sources also revealed that the players have also lodged a formal complaint with the PCB high ups but with the chairman under suspension on the court’s direction the whole lot changes are expected in the PCB with the likely intervention of the government particularly the chief patron, who is the president of Pakistan.
Cheema, who is on deportation from Wapda, has been away from the duty for more than a year now and as the sources say the federal government has also asked for his services back in the federation.
The team sources said that he (Cheema) has applied martial law for certain players and if someone comes to see any of the players, he is snubbed in a very bad manner while he himself and his close players were allowed to see anybody coming to meet them freely.
“Such an attitude of the team official with the players was visible on the field with some of the seniors failing to put up a fight in the previous two matches. There should also be code of conduct for a manager and team management also, demanded a player on condition of anonymity.
“If contract obligations are for us, then the conditions should also be applied to all the people traveling with the team on equality basis,” he added.
When contacted, an official of the PCB denied to have received any complaint against the manager from the players and stated that restrictions on the players was the need of the hour in the back drop of the fact that happened during the team’s previous visit to London when three of the players were caught in spot-fixing.
“The PCB did not afford another such fixing scandal to plague the Pakistan cricket,” he said and added “The code of conduct is for all the players on the tour and the contracted lot and no one is an exception. We would surely take action if there will be any reports of biased attitude,” he said.