Prayer and Player: Inzamam defends faith

By John Cheeran
The Koran vs nandrolone debate is raging in Pakistan cricket.
It is important for anyone, for that matter any team, to decide when prayer has to end and play has to begin.
Prayer should not be a substitute for player.
I had written about the religious card being played by Pakistan's current captain Younis Khan at a time of adversity. Younis gloated over his side's win over Sri Lanka in Jaipur in the Champions Trophy. "We are a Muslim team," Younis had said then.
It is important to remember that when Pakistan won the World Cup in 1992 for the first and last time in Melbourne, the then captain Imran Khan did not give credit to Almighty.
Well, Imran did not say then they are a Muslim team.
On Tuesday, Inzamam-ul-Haq, who played a very crucial role in Pakistan's World Cup triumph in 1992, had to defend the role of Islam in Pakistan cricket.
Inzamam dismissed concerns about the increased influence of Islam on Pakistan's cricketers, adding that he had never forced anyone to pray or grow a beard. Inzamam refuted comments made by new Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Nasim Ashraf regarding finding a balance between players' faith and sporting activities, and that players should not feel under pressure to be religious.
"I have never forced anyone to offer prayers, nor have I linked selection in the team to religion. This is not correct at all," Inzamam said on Tuesday in an interview with the BBC's Urdu service.
"Those who are saying these things have never offered prayers, nor have they any link to Islam, which does not force anyone. Look at the players yourself. Just three players who toured England -Mohammad Yousuf, Shahid Afridi and myself, have beards, and our prayers and religious activities have never stopped a match," added the 36-year-old.
Ashraf, who recently took over from Shaharyar Khan as PCB chief, had commented on the religion question last week in a television interview with CNBC Pakistan.
"There is no doubt their religious faith is a motivating factor in the team. It binds them together. But there should be a balance between religion and cricket," Ashraf said.
The chairman also said he had told Inzamam "clearly that there should be no pressure on players who don't pray regularly, or any compulsion on them to do it under pressure".
"I have told him there should be no perception among players that if they don't pray they will not be in the team and Inzamam has assured me there is no pressure on anyone to do anything they don't want to do," Ashraf added.
It is indeed heartening that the chief of Pakistan board is keen to put some sense back into the dressing room. Inzamam, definitely, is feeling the heat after Ashraf has taken over the reins of the PCB.
Ashraf had squarely blamed Inzamam for precipitating the Oval Test fiasco, and it is quite unlikely that Inzamam will be reinstated as captain of the side now.
The issue of religion in Pakistan cricket arose last year when batsman Yousuf converted to Islam from Christianity, changed his name from Yousuf Youhana, grew a beard and started bowing on the pitch after making big scores.
Pakistan cricketers were typified by playboy and legendary all-rounder Imran Khan in the 1980s, who has become increasingly devout in his new career as a politician. Following the death of his daughter in 2001, former opening batsman Saeed Anwar joined a preaching group, which turned more teammates towards religion.
These players included former spinners Mushtaq Ahmed and Saqlain Mushtaq, who now sport beards and preach Islam in England, while Anwar also persuaded Yousuf to convert from Christianity.
The Pakistani players attend religious congregations on a regular basis and are often seen offering prayers in public, as well as having a special prayer room set up in their hotels.