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Former Pakistan captain and fast bowling legend Imran Khan has called for an apology from umpire Darrell Hair for wrongly implicating Inzamam-ul-Haq in the ball-tampering row.

Controversy erupted when Pakistan refused to take the field after tea on the fourth day of the fourth and final Test at The Oval against England last month after Australian Hair and West Indian Billy Doctrove penalised them five runs for ball tampering.

England were awarded the match on a forfeit and Pakistan captain Inzamam was subsequently charged with ball-tampering and bringing the game into disrepute by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

At a hearing at The Oval on Thursday, the ICC cleared Inzamam of the first charge because of a lack of evidence but banned him for four One-day Internationals (ODIs) on the second charge.

“In fact, the ICC verdict totally negates what Hair did and said during and after The Oval Test,” Imran said on Friday. “It is a victory for Pakistan, skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq and other cricketers,” said Imran.

Imran said Hair should apologise if he “has some respect for moral values”. “I am delighted to see our team getting a clean chit. Hair did all he could to implicate them in an offence they never committed,” he added. Imran defended the ICC’s ban on Inzamam, saying it was a “minor punishment”.

Source:The News