The Controversial Case of Shakoor Rana

The-controversial-case-of-Shakoor-Rana

Controversial Case of Shakoor Rana : It all started in December 1987, England were in Pakistan and the second out of four test matches was underway in Faisalabad. Unfortunately, it was to become known as one of the lowest moments in the history of cricket and it involved England’s Mike Gatting and the umpire Shakoor Rana.

The-controversial-case-of-Shakoor-Rana

Tensions were already quite high as at the time, the relationship between the two teams and both cricket boards were at an all-time low, especially after an acrimonious tour of England that took place earlier in that year and the first test in Lahore had shown some bad decisions by umpire Shakeel Khan which had made matters worse and raised the tension even more.

What Happened?

Controversial Case of Shakoor Rana : It was the second day of the second test in Faisalabad. England seemed to be in a commanding position with Pakistan performing well below par on 106 for 5 after England had posted a respectable 292. Gatting was the England captain at the time and was trying to change things to create more wickets. Gatting brought off-spinner Eddie Hemmings to the table and after informing Salim Malik, the non-striking batsman, that he was going to adjust his field and bring up David Capel from long-leg, Hemmings started his run up.

After Hemmings had started his run-up, Gatting signalled to Capel that he was in the right position and didn’t need to come any further forward and told him to stop. Such a move is legal, as Gatting had told the batsman and it didn’t involve moving a man. Gatting was also out of sight of the batsman so the gesture wouldn’t distract or distort the batman’s concentration.

Shakoor Rana Images

It was this move that led to the umpire Shakoor Rana to stop the play as Hemmings delivered the ball. As the second umpire Khizar Khan called dead ball, the fielders and batsmen alike, were left standing in the middle of the ground bemused at this decision. After asking Rana why the decision was made, Gatting was told by Rana that he was waving his hand and that means that he is cheating. Gatting was quick to respond and advised Rana that he wasn’t moving his player, but telling him to stop moving which isn’t illegal.

Gatting suggested to Rana that he should go back to where he was standing and continue with the match but as Rana did this, he was heard saying “You are a f***ing cheat”.

In this instance, it would have been much better if Gatting had simply just walked away and let the game carry on but due to the fact that Gatting was already getting fed up with what he thought was unfair umpiring, especially as he had been on the receiving end of a poor decision at the first test in Lahore, and also England had been left furious with the decision by Rana to wear a Pakistan sweater under his jacket, he lost his temper.

Gatting then proceeded to march towards Rana and the two men went head to head, exchanging insults that were definitely seen to be very inappropriate. This lead to images of the incident being shown all around the world showing Gatting shouting and jabbing his finger towards an equally angry Rana before being escorted away by colleague Bill Athey.

What Happened Next?

Shakoor Rana controversy

Controversial Case of Shakoor Rana : What happened next quickly escalated with Shakoor Rana later recalling that “Gatting moved a fielder behind the batsman which was against the law and when I called it a dead ball he abused me which was against the values of this gentleman’s game,” “When I told him that it was against the rules, Gatting retorted saying ‘We made the rules”.

On the evening of this confrontation, Rana threatened to withdraw from the match but it was perceived by many as an empty threat and that play would carry on as usual the following day.

England arrived as normal to the ground the following day and the severity of the previous day soon became clear. Shakoor Rana was  not willing to carry on officiating the test match. This lead to both management teams being summoned to lengthy meetings which included Rana demanding a written apology from Gatting who agreed to it as long as Rana apologised to him as well.

Just before 10.30am, the captain of the England team Mike Gatting, lead his team onto the field in front of 2,000 fans which included an increased amount of riot police. But the strange events kept coming with no umpires and no batsmen following them. Gatting and his team were left to wait on the ground and after several minutes of confusion, Gatting eventually led his back to the pavilion where they remained for another six hours.

Was there an end to the confrontation?

Shakoor Rana

Controversial Case of Shakoor Rana : In a word, no. Draft statements were produced but what actually happened afterwards differs considerably. Some reports say that Gatting had agreed to sign an apology letter and Rana refused. This as later contradicted by Rana himself who went on to say that “I was never going to apologies, I`d done nothing wrong. I’m still very proud of Gatting’s written apology. I keep it under my pillow and read it from time to time.”

The game eventually resumed but not before the British Foreign Office got involved.  The discussions between Britain and Pakistan continued well into the night, with the risk of England’s tour being cancelled and the players returning home.

However, on the fourth day of the test, although unhappy at being ordered to apologise to Rana, he delivered a hand-written apology to him and play resumed. Bad light meant that England’s hopes of victory were tarnished but the consequences of the test were still on everybodies mind especially when Gatting told journalists he was considering his position as captain and player. His team-mates also protested at the England cricket boards decision to force Gatting to apologise.

After the game, England board officials flew to Pakistan to assure the squad of their support, but Pakistan initially named Rana and Shakeel Khan as the umpires for the deciding test before backing down and replacing both with less controversial umpires.

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