Imran Khan’s sons have strongly criticised the Pakistan Cricket Board over its reaction to an interview about their father during Pakistan’s Test series in England.
Sulaiman and Kasim Khan spoke to Sky Sports about the health of their father, the former Pakistan captain and 1992 World Cup winner.
The interview was shown during the lunch break of the Lord’s Test between England and Pakistan.
The PCB lodged a formal complaint with Sky Sports over the interview. Reports also said the board considered keeping the Pakistan team off the field after lunch in protest.
Pakistan eventually returned and the match continued.
Kasim was highly critical of the PCB’s handling of the situation.
“They made absolute fools of themselves,” he told The Telegraph.
Sulaiman said he had expected some response to the interview but was surprised by how far the situation went.
“I was expecting some sort of response,” Sulaiman said, “but I didn’t think they would be so tactless as to threaten not to take to the field.”
He also questioned why the PCB became involved in an interview about a former Pakistan cricketer.
“It shouldn’t be in the remit of the Pakistan Cricket Board to ask for an interview about an ex-Pakistan player, somebody who lived in England for 22 years, to be taken down.”
“This wasn’t about politics, but about the humanitarian situation and his health.”
Imran remains one of the biggest names in Pakistan’s cricket history.
He captained Pakistan to their first and only men’s ODI World Cup title in 1992. His sons believe that makes the PCB’s response even harder to understand.
The Lord’s incident was not the first time the relationship between Imran’s legacy and the PCB had drawn attention.
In 2023, the board faced criticism after Imran did not appear in an official video celebrating major moments in Pakistan cricket history. The video included Pakistan’s 1992 World Cup success, which came under Imran’s captaincy.
The PCB later released another version which included him.
Kasim believes the board’s latest reaction showed how sensitive it remains whenever his father receives attention.
“You can see the panic that comes over them the moment any noise about our father is made,” Kasim said.
“The noise is when they get rattled and start making sloppy errors, like blocking the team from heading out to bat and making an even bigger deal out of what was said.”
The controversy also came at a difficult time for Pakistan on their tour of England.
However, Imran’s sons made clear that their main concern was not the politics around their father. They wanted attention on his health and his treatment.
Their concerns have also received support from some major names in cricket.
Australia Test captain Pat Cummins has called for Imran to receive urgent medical care and be treated with dignity.
Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad also spoke emotionally about his old teammate.
“What’s being done to him is not right, it’s unnecessary,” Miandad said. “He has a family, too. I think about it all the time, what he must be doing in prison.”
Miandad and Imran were central figures during one of Pakistan cricket’s most successful periods and were teammates in the 1992 World Cup winning side.
“We were so close, we took Pakistan to such heights,” Miandad said. “I can’t help but feel so sad about it.”
For Sulaiman and Kasim, the Lord’s episode showed how their father’s situation continues to cross into cricket more than three decades after he lifted the World Cup.
And they believe the PCB only gave the interview more attention through its response.
“They made absolute fools of themselves,” Kasim said.
