Pakistan‘s misery at the World Cup just doesn’t seem to end. A new controversy involving captain Babar Azam has sparked widespread reaction, after his private WhatsApp conversations were made public on live TV.
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While their on-field performances have been well-documented, their off-field issues continue to make headlines. Here is how the latest controversy unfolded:
The player payment dispute
According to local journalists, the Pakistan cricketers are in the midst of a pay dispute with the Pakistan Cricket Board. The players have reportedly not been paid for four to five months now. The central contracts were announced during the Asia Cup, but the disbursement of money is reportedly still in the works.
The last time Pakistan players were paid salaries by the Pakistan Cricket Board was in June 2023. They have not received any salary now for over 4 months #Cricket #CWC23
— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) October 28, 2023
However, in an interview with ARY News, PCB chair Zaka Ashraf said that due process needs to be followed, and the players did not have time to sign contracts before their departure. This led to delay in paperwork and, consequently, the release of money. According to Ashraf, the contracts are now being sent to India.
Babar calls, no replies?
According to several reports, Pakistan captain Babar Azam has been leading the players’ complaints, and has reached out to Ashraf, but his calls (or messages) have not being answered. The same has been revealed by former wicketkeeper Rashid Latif.
“Babar Azam has been messaging the chairman for two days, but he hasn’t replied. He’s been messaging Salman Naseer (PCB COO) and Usman Wahla (PCB Director),” Latif said on PTV Sports.
However, Ashraf hit back at the allegations in the interview: “He [the captain] has never called me. The team’s captain has a level – he can speak till the director or COO”.
Leaked WhatsApp chat U-turn
A video clip doing the rounds shows a snippet from ARY News (the same channel that interviewed Ashraf), featuring a conversation between Babar and PCB COO Salman Naseer is made public.
A WhatsApp screenshot shows a message to Babar that reads: “Babar, there’s also been news circulating on TV and social media that you have been calling Chairman and he’s not answering. Have you called him recently?”
To which, Babar replies: “Salam (greetings) Salman bhai. Ma ny to sir ko koi call nai ke [I haven’t called sir].”
They leaked Babar Azam’s private WhatsApp chats?
Pakistani players ko milta kya hai ko unse itni expectations rakhte ho? This is disgusting, he still has three matches to play in this World Cup pic.twitter.com/8eHSG2oygT— Sushant Mehta (@SushantNMehta) October 29, 2023
The authenticity of the WhatsApp chats haven’t been confirmed.
‘Pathetic’ – Reactions to private chats being made public
In the aftermath, a lot of the reaction has been on the act of making a private conversation public. Among others, Waqar Younis, who is currently commentating at the World Cup, called the act “pathetic”.
“Ya kya karna ki koshish kar raha ho aap loog??? [What are you guys trying to do here?] This is pathetic !!! Khush ho gaya aap loog [Are you guys happy now?]. Please leave @babarazam258 alone 🙏🏽. He’s an asset of Pakistan Cricket @TheRealPCB @ARYNEWSOFFICIAL @Salman_ARY”
Azhar Ali, on the panel for the same show, wasn’t too happy with the chat, saying that Babar should have been consulted before making it public.
Ya kya Karna ki koshish kar raha ho aap loog??? This is pathetic !!!
Khush ho gaya aap loog. Please leave @babarazam258 alone 🙏🏽. He’s an asset of Pakistan Cricket @TheRealPCB @ARYNEWSOFFICIAL @Salman_ARY https://t.co/pcM90yUGqy— Waqar Younis (@waqyounis99) October 30, 2023
Shahid Afridi, too, spoke about it separately: “It’s a shoddy act. We are defaming our own country, we are defaming our own players”.
Anchor responds: “Chairman didn’t have an issue with it going live”
On his personal account, the show’s anchor, Waseem Badami said: “As a team, we made a wrong decision, sharing Babar’s chat with a senior PCB official. In short, we were sitting together and deciding an hour before the show that we shouldn’t make a private chat public.
“About five to seven minutes before the show, we received a clip where Zaka Ashraf is saying: ‘I am giving you this screenshot and I am asking you to show it live on screen. If he’s admitting responsibility on TV, we thought we can share it. It wasn’t the ideal decision”.
It is unclear whether Ashraf had directly asked the channel’s management to air the chats. “Ashraf said on ‘TV’ that he’s willing to share the chats,” said Badami.
My humble thoughts on Babar Azam – Zaka Ashraf issue 🙏🙏🙏 pic.twitter.com/g7RwamSP54
— Waseem Badami (@WaseemBadami) October 29, 2023
The story is likely to unravel further, for there have been no official statement yet from PCB or Babar on the issue. There are several other layers to the story as well, which are likely to unfold over the next few days.
