Lamenting that the match-fixing slur had overshadowed his cricketing prowess in public memory, former Pakistan captain Salim Malik claimed he was made a scapegoat in the entire episode by some vested interests.
In a chat with a news channel, Malik -- presently serving a life-ban for his alleged involvement in the match-fixing saga -- said the last five years had been a harrowing time for him and his family.
The then mainstay of the Pakistan middle-order, Malik recalled that his son was denied admission to a reputed public school, and all because he wanted to save his peers from the same allegations.
Claiming that the Justice MM Qayyum committee -- which probed the incident in Pakistan -- was under tremendous pressure, Malik said Justice Qayyum was approached many times by those people who made him a scapegoat and went scotfree.
Stressing that cricket was his only skill, Malik regretted that his career was cut short in its prime. Malik landed in trouble during a Test match against Australia in Karachi in 1994.
Austsies Shane Warne, Mark Waugh and Tim May had alleged that he had offered huge sums of money to them to underperform in the match. Interestingly, Pakistan won that match by one wicket.
Malik also accused the media of discriminating against him. The former batsman also rued that he was ignored for the BCCI Platinum Jubilee programme even though almost all the former Pakistan captains were invited for the occasion.
Sunday, May 15, 2005
