Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has lodged a formal complaint with Sky Sports after the broadcaster aired an interview with the sons of former prime minister and captain Imran Khan during the lunch interval on the first day of the Lord’s Test.
Cricinfo reported that the board even considered pulling Pakistan off the field after the break in protest.
Former England captain and current Sky Sports broadcaster Mike Atherton conducted the interview. In it, Imran’s sons, Suleiman and Kasim Khan, spoke about their father’s health. Imran has been in prison for three years, and his sons said they feared for his life.
The PCB contacted Sky before the lunch break to object to the segment. The board warned that Pakistan’s players would not return to the field for the second session if the interview went ahead. Sky held the interview back during the discussions, but eventually broadcast the full 18-minute clip. By the time it ended, Pakistan’s players were already heading back out to resume play.
Atherton recorded the interview with Imran’s sons on Wednesday morning in the Writers’ Room at Lord’s. Sky had run a teaser for the segment in the build-up to the Test.
In Pakistan, PTV, which holds the broadcast rights for the series, did not air the interview.
Earlier this week, a group of 22 former international cricket captains wrote a second letter to Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif, renewing their appeal for Imran to receive proper medical treatment.
The signatories included Indian greats Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev, along with Australia’s Greg Chappell and Ian Chappell. It was the second such letter sent to the prime minister within six months, following an earlier appeal in February signed by 14 former captains.
