Salim Malik, the former Pakistan captain who was found guilty of match-fixing, has urged the authorities to drop his lifetime ban, given that other players have been allowed a route back into the sport.
Malik, 57, was found guilty of match-fixing in a scandal that shook the cricket world in 2000, and was sanctioned with a lifetime ban from the sport – he was the first player to be banned from all cricket for fixing – with Australians Mark Waugh, Shane Warne and Tim May testifying that Malik had approached them with a bribe to underperform in the 1994/95 Karachi Test.
However, 20 years on, Malik believes he should be allowed an opportunity to “serve my country” and asked for redemption. “I have wanted to serve my country and players as a coach,” he said in a video message. “Whenever I tried to serve as a coach, I was not considered.”
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Malik, who played 103 Tests and 283 ODIs, was referring to his application to be Pakistan’s batting coach in 2012, after a lower court in Pakistan lifted his ban in 2008 – a decision that didn’t have the backing of both the ICC and the PCB.
However, the PCB in the last decade allowed for the reintegration of the likes of Mohammad Amir and Sharjeel Khan, and Malik believes he deserves a second chance as well. “Mohammad Amir, Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Sharjeel Khan have been playing, but I have been ignored,” he said.
