Hussain and Atherton’s names were missing from the six-member panel announced by the PCB, following the airing of an interview with jailed former Pakistan captain Imran Khan’s sons. Former England captains Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton have been left out of the commentary team for the ongoing ODI tri-series by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
During Pakistan’s tour of England earlier this year, Sky Sports broadcast an interview with Imran’s sons, Kasim and Sulaiman Khan, which was conducted by Atherton.
Pakistan’s state broadcaster, PTV, did not air the interview domestically. The PCB reportedly threatened a player walkout due to the political nature of the interview and also lodged a complaint with Sky Sports. It is worth mentioning that both Atherton and Hussain were part of the commentary team when England last toured Pakistan in 2024. The two also claimed that the country’s former prime minister and World Cup-winning captain spends more than 23 hours a day alone in a small cell. Several former cricketers have written to the Pakistan government demanding medical attention for the 1992 World Cup-winning captain.
Kasim, Imran’s second son with Jemima Goldsmith, said that several political prisoners had died in jail and that the Pakistan government was planning to do the same to his father. They further alleged that the Pakistan authorities had refused to grant them visas on “technical grounds”.
