The PCB has come under severe criticism from passionate fans for the noticeable absence of World Cup-winning captain Imran Khan in a video celebrating Pakistan cricket’s achievements on Independence Day.
Urooj Mumtaz Khan, a former captain of the women’s cricket team and a commentator, pointed out that while the video showcased other players from the victorious 1992 World Cup team, it conspicuously left out Imran Khan.
Urooj Mumtaz Khan expressed her disappointment, stating, “While reminiscing about Pakistan cricket’s history, the video featured 11 images of the 1992 World Cup victory, but failed to acknowledge the greatest player to have ever represented the country! Imran Khan’s legacy extends beyond global cricket and he unquestionably deserves recognition.” She underlined Imran Khan’s enduring impact on cricket history.
Reminiscing in Pakistan crickets history, 11 images of the 1992 World Cup win and not one pic or mention of the greatest that ever played the game for the country!
Imran Khan will go down in history as one of the greats of the global game!#PakistanCricket https://t.co/wKsvBgNZ3u
— Urooj Mumtaz Khan (@uroojmumtazkhan) August 14, 2023
Bold of them to assume by not mentioning greatest captain this country ever had will damage his reputation, there's no Pakistan cricket without Imran Khan. https://t.co/8UYqTfGV5a pic.twitter.com/43RSIEwS7X
— Haroon (@ThisHaroon) August 14, 2023
This is what happens when you let cults run the country.
The winning captain of the 1992 World Cup, widely recognised as the greatest Pakistani cricketer and one of the best captains in history, is not in the video.
Instead, a politician handing a trophy is an achievement👏🏼 https://t.co/CuvVbZmCGi pic.twitter.com/YMDAUuhU6I
— hamza (@Hamzakk) August 14, 2023
Petty…
Bik gai hai.. https://t.co/FBDRwTLoEi— Ibrahim Badees (@IbrahimBadees) August 14, 2023
The video released by the PCB began with a quote from Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah and chronicled Pakistan’s cricket journey from its debut on the international stage in 1952 to the triumph of the 1992 World Cup, Champions Trophy, and the T20 World Cup 2022, where Pakistan secured the runner-up position.
Read more: Pakistan military congratulates nation on 76th Independence Day
Although a brief image of Imran Khan holding the World Cup trophy appeared, numerous fans found this fleeting appearance unsatisfactory and demanded a more prominent tribute to the former captain.
Lol @TheRealPCB you made a joke of yourself…
The fact that Imran Khan was the winning captain in 1992, remains the same. 😅 https://t.co/xkAPuweJAO
— Shiffa Z. Yousafzai (@Shiffa_ZY) August 14, 2023
Disgusting and low of PCB cutting the winning captain from the videos & photos. Stop politicising cricket. https://t.co/dhif3vmTgi pic.twitter.com/I49OtbeQPK
— Ihtisham Ul Haq (@iihtishamm) August 14, 2023
How can you not mention IK when talking about the history of Pakistan cricket? https://t.co/nZEFbjB94Z
— Faizan Lakhani (@faizanlakhani) August 14, 2023
Critics across various platforms, including commentators and sports journalists, rebuked the PCB for excluding Imran Khan, who is presently incarcerated in Attock prison following his conviction by a session judge in the Toshakhana criminal case on August 5.
Commentator Annus Raza labeled the PCB’s omission of the iconic former Pakistan cricket captain as “shameful,” emphasizing that the video’s oversight of Imran Khan, the nation’s most celebrated all-rounder and World Cup-winning leader, was entirely unacceptable.
Sports journalist Arfa Feroz Zake underscored the glaring contradiction demonstrated by the national cricket board, noting that while the PCB advocates for maintaining a separation between sports and politics, it failed to incorporate Imran Khan, Pakistan’s only ICC World Cup-winning captain, into their special Independence Day video. Zake criticized this action as hypocritical and disheartening, reflecting poorly on the PCB’s proclaimed stance.