In a turn of events, Chief Selector Wahab Riaz has come forward to staunchly defend Salman Butt, emphasizing the need for cricket enthusiasts to move on from the 2010 spot-fixing scandal. Riaz asserted that Butt had already served his punishment, and it was time for people to look past the controversy.
According to Riaz, Butt’s expertise as a cricketing mind was the primary factor behind his decision to appoint him as a consultant. The chief selector made it clear that there was no external pressure influencing his choice, highlighting that the move was entirely his own.
Riaz expressed frustration over what he perceived as an agenda by certain individuals aiming to tarnish the reputation of the cricket board. He suggested that these elements were exploiting the situation for personal gain by insulting the PCB. As someone deeply entrenched within the organization, Riaz voiced his concern about potential harm to the PCB’s image and, as a consequence, decided to retract his initial decision to include Butt as a consultant.
Wahab Riaz’s statement
“I think people should move on. Whatever happened was some time ago, and he (Salman Butt) served his punishment. For me, he is a good cricketing mind, and that’s why I wanted him as a consultant. There is no pressure on me – it was my decision, and I am the one who has reverted this decision as well. People need to understand that you should move on in life, but I think some people perhaps started running an agenda because they wanted to cast dirt on the cricket board and extract personal benefit out of insulting PCB. Since I am a part of this organization, I didn’t want any such thing to happen, especially due to my decision, so I took it back.”
Despite Riaz’s defense of Salman Butt and his plea for people to move on, the PCB has ultimately reverted its decision, leading to Butt no longer serving as a consultant to the chief selector. This about-face raises questions about the internal dynamics within the PCB and the delicate balance between addressing past controversies and the desire for a clean slate in Pakistan cricket. The incident underscores the challenges faced by cricketing bodies in managing public perceptions and internal pressures while making decisions that impact the integrity of the sport.
