Hair Row: Did Pak overreact? No

SUNDAY DEBATE: Hair controversy: Did Pakistan overreact? No
Arjuna Ranatunga, Former Sri Lanka skipper
Given the unique circumstances, Pakistan was right in not taking the field. The entire affair was shrouded in mystery, and as such Pakistan have the right to feel aggrieved.
On the face of it, it would appear there is an accusation of ball tampering, a damning charge without an iota of evidence.Also, the high-handed manner in which umpire Darrell Hair conducted the proceedings smacks of bias.
This is not the first time Hair has got into a mindless scrap with a cricket team from the subcontinent. It is time the cricket boards of India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka join hands to ensure he does not officiate in our games.
Hair is a volatile character and his actions in this Test, and in plenty of others, have been motivated, to say the least.
I am sure Hair and associate Billy Doctrove would not have dared to take such an arbitrary step with more combative captains like Imran Khan, Sunil Gavaskar, Sourav Ganguly or me.
This is where Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul Haq's soft-spoken nature was taken advantage of. If I had been leading at the Oval, I would have led my men off the field right at the point when Hair awarded five penalty runs to England.
Although Pakistan's idea of a protest seemed muddled at best, they were left with no other choice but a boycott. So, it is not right to blame a confused captain who is one of the nicest cricketers the game will ever see.
Nobody in his right mind will take an accusation like that lying down, especially when there is no evidence. This incident requires considerable analysis because it will have repercussions on the way a game of international cricket is conducted.
The ICC is also to blame. The Asian Cricket Council and the Indian, Pakistani and Lankan boards should ensure that this ridiculous backing of umpires by the ICC does not harm the subcontinent's results on the field.
This was a game in which Pakistan were winning. Instead, a result was awarded to the opposition.
The ICC and the umpires cannot guess what public impact such incidents have. After the 'chucking' incident, Australian players were booed at in Sri Lanka.
Whenever England visits Pakistan next, they will realise how this issue has gone down with the Pakistani public. That is sad, because none of the players from either side are to be blamed for this fiasco.
Of course, if they have concrete evidence of ball tampering, that will be another story altogether. But merely taking an umpire's word for it is justice denied.