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When Pakistan 'Actually Boycotted' A Cricket Match Midway Through The Series

Anurag Dasgupta

When Pakistan boycotted a Test match [Source: AFP Photo] When Pakistan boycotted a Test match [Source: AFP Photo]

The Asia Cup 2025 has been filled with controversies, and when the tournament schedule was announced, it was evident that things wouldn’t go ahead smoothly. Indian players didn’t shake hands with Pakistan cricketers during their game on Sunday, and this started a long saga between PCB, BCCI, and match referee Andy Pycroft.

PCB wanted the match referee to be removed from the entire tournament as they believed he favoured the Indian side. However, their plea was rejected by the ICC, and Pakistan threatened to boycott the match against the UAE, a move which didn’t work out as PCB had to pay USD 16 million if they were to pull out of the tournament.

Pakistan decided to go ahead with its match against the UAE, and the boycott movement was suppressed. However, that was not the case 19 years ago, when Pakistan boycotted a Test match against England.

When Pakistan pulled out of a Test match midway

On August 20, 2006, the first-ever Test match was boycotted as Pakistan pulled out midway through the Oval Test match. The Inzamam-ul-Haq-led side was accused of ball-tampering by the on-field umpire. The hosts had a 2-0 lead in the series, but Pakistan dominated the proceedings in the fourth Test before they were accused of altering the ball.

Umpires Darrell Hair and Billy Doctrove, inspected the ball and found that the Asian side has attempted to change the shape of the ball, and awarded England with five penalty runs.

This stunned the Pakistan side, as they were in shock, and the match continued smoothly till the tea break was taken. However, the real surprise came after the break as the England batters made their way to the middle, but the Pakistan players didn’t.

The two umpires walked towards the Pakistan team’s dressing room to have a chat with them, but they returned to the field and dislodged the bails, only to award England the victory and the series. An hour later, Pakistan returned to the field to convince the umpires, but a final decision had already been taken.

Interestingly, the ICC dropped ball-tampering charges against Pakistan as no clear evidence was found.