Former Pakistan captain Inzamam ul Haq has made unusual allegations of ball-tampering against Indian pacer Arshdeep Singh. Inzamam questioned how Arshdeep managed to reverse-swing the ball in the 16th over while defending a target during his match-winning performance of 3/37 in the ICC T20 World Cup Super Eights clash against Australia.
Arshdeep is currently the joint-highest wicket-taker in the tournament, with 15 scalps in six games, averaging 11.86 and maintaining an economy rate of 7.41. His best figures are 4/9, tying him with Afghanistan’s Fazalhaq Farooqi for most wickets in the competition.
Speaking on a Pakistan news channel, clips of which have gone viral on social media, Inzamam said, “Arshdeep Singh, when he was bowling the 15th (16th) over, the ball was reversing. Is it too early (for reverse swing) with a relatively new ball? This means the ball was ready for reverse swing by the 12th or 13th over. Umpires should keep their eyes open (to spot) these things.”
In the same show, Inzamam’s former teammate Salim Malik also accused the International Cricket Council (ICC) of “keeping their eyes shut” when it comes to certain teams. “Inzy, I always say this, eyes are kept shut when it comes to some teams, and India is one of those teams. I remember in Zimbabwe when Wasim (Akram) was bowling, he made it wet, and we were all surprised at it; as in how come one side was wet, and when I went and complained, I was fined quite heavily,” Malik added.
Inzamam further claimed that there would have been significant uproar if a Pakistani bowler had found reverse swing as early as Arshdeep did, suggesting that some “serious work” had been done to the ball during the India-Australia match. “If it was Pakistani bowlers (reverse swinging the ball), this would have been a big issue (shor mach jaata). We know reverse swing very well and if Arshdeep can come in the 15th (16th) over and start reversing the ball, it means some serious work had been done before,” he concluded.
