Salman Butt: “This issue is for the ICC and the PCB to handle and players have no right to speak on it”

Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has said that former and current cricketers shouldn’t talk about whether tainted players should be allowed to make their international comeback.

Salman’s comments come after veteran all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez questioned whether opening batsman Sharjeel Khan should be allowed to make his international comeback.

Sharjeel recently made his Pakistan Super League (PSL) comeback after serving two-and-a-half years of a five-year ban he received for his involvement in a spot-fixing scandal in the 2017 PSL.

In this year’s PSL, the 30-year-old, who played for the Karachi Kings, scored 199 runs at an average of 24.87 and a strike-rate of 144.20.

Furthermore, Pakistan great Javed Miandad suggested that anyone found guilty of match-fixing should be hanged.

However, Salman, who was banned for five years for his involvement in the 2010 spot-fixing scandal that shocked the cricketing world, believes that once a player has served their punishment, they should be “treated equally” and allowed to play for their country again.

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“As per the law that exists, players should be treated equally. Punishment implies that once you have served the time, you should be treated like any other player,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan. “I try not to get into this issue but I want to ask people who are talking about this whole episode.

“Where does their integrity go when they are in the mix and working with those people? Where does their integrity go when they endorse players who get selected because of their connections and take the spot from deserving players? Where is their integrity when Pakistan cricket suffers because of the inabilities of these players who come into the side?

“They should talk after giving it some thought. If everyone starts saying things, then there would be no end. There have been many players who were added because of their connections as the 15th man in the squad. There have been several players making comebacks without any meaningful performances. I don’t take names but it is what it is. This issue is for the ICC and the PCB to handle and players have no right to speak on it.”

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