Reports: Babar Azam, PCB to take legal action against former cricketers, journalists

Former cricketers called Pakistan skipper Babar Azam out several times for his poor captaincy in the T20 World Cup 2024. The 29-year-old resigned all forms of captaincy after the ODI World Cup 2023, but after requests from key Pakistan officials, he decided to take charge once again. However, under his leadership, Pakistan suffered defeats against New Zealand, and England, which was followed by group-stage elimination in the global event.

They lost to the United States of America in their opening game of the competition and later suffered against India, which complicated their road to the Super Eights. After their elimination, a lot of present and former cricketers like Ahmed Shehzad, Shoaib Malik, and Mohd Hafeez among others called out the skipper for his poor captaincy and noted that he favours his friends in the team, despite them being not good enough.

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As per reports, Azam and the officials of the Pakistan Cricket Board have collected evidence related to statements made by journalists and former cricketers and will soon be handed over to the legal department. Some content creators on YouTube also talked about possible match-fixing, which infuriated the officials.

An official close to the development commented on the same and stated that baseless allegations won’t be tolerated and asked for proof. He added that there won’t be any inquiry as there’s no material to such comments and mentioned that the legal team will take action soon.

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“We are fully aware of these negative comments. Criticism within the bounds of the game is acceptable and there is no objection to it. However, baseless allegations like match-fixing cannot be tolerated under any circumstances,” the PCB source was quoted as saying by First Post in the report.

“PCB has no doubts, so why should we conduct an inquiry? Those who made the allegations should provide proof. We have instructed our legal department to issue notices to such individuals and demand evidence. If not provided, we will seek compensation for defamation. A new law in Punjab ensures that a decision will come within six months,” the source added.