Pakistan press backs cricket walkout
July 5, 2008 
Commentators in Pakistan back their cricket team's refusal to take the field against England in protest against umpire Darrell Hair's decision to penalise them for ball tampering.
In their sports columns, one former Pakistan captain says the Australian umpire is "universally" felt by sub-continent players to be "biased", while another describes him as a "mini Hitler".
One paper concedes that Mr Hair "might have seen something wrong", but says that even so, he should have come up with proof.
RAMIZ RAJA IN THE NATION
The star of the show definitely was umpire Darrell Hair, but as a villain of the piece… Players from the sub-continent universally feel that he is biased… Pakistan… were in their right to protest… Will it be the end of the road for [Hair]? If it is, it would not be a day too soon. But it is indeed sad that it has taken such a huge incident to remove a distasteful bully from the scene.
SARFRAZ NAWAZ IN DIN
It was inappropriate to protest after more than one hour and if they had decided not to field, then why did they come? … Bob Woolmer is an English person and he has favoured [England] to send the team back into the ground.
IMRAN KHAN IN THE NATION
Hair is one of those characters when he wears the white umpire's coat, he metamorphoses into a mini Hitler… During my career I have seen such umpires who go out of their way to make their authority felt. They are umpiring fundamentalists. Such characters court controversy.
AQIB JAVED IN DIN
Technically as per [the] International Cricket Council's rules Pakistan has lost the match.
SHAHED SADULLAH IN THE NEWS
The dice has been too heavily loaded in favour of one side against the other… Hair excelled himself, even by his own unfathomable standards… It is seriously time to examine the possibility of taking this man to a court of law… Enough is enough. The Darrell Hair problem now has to be addressed and it does not look as if there is much hope that ICC will do so.
KHALID HUSSAIN IN THE NEWS
It took a ball tampering allegation from the infamous Darrell Hair to add drama to an otherwise dead rubber.
INTIKHAB ALAM IN THE DAILY TIMES
[Current Pakistan captain] Inzamam should have taken the decision of leaving the ground at that very moment when the umpires decided to change the ball or either he should have kept on playing because Pakistan were in the winning position… Umpire Darrell Hair must have seen something wrong but he should have come up with proof.
ALEX BROWN IN THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD
The 76-Test career of the Australian cricket umpire Darrell Hair is under threat following Pakistan's refusal to play future matches in which he is officiating.
