Michael Holding, the legendary West Indies pacer, is the latest among the cricket fraternity to raise his voice for Imran Khan. Pakistan’s 1992 World Cup-winning captain currently remains in jail and concern is rising over his health. Recently, 21 international captains wrote to Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, asking that basic amenities be provided to the legendary all-rounder, and days later, Pat Cummins, Wasim Akram, Javed Miandad, and Brian Lara also spoke up in favour of Imran, asking for basic humane treatment.
Speaking of Imran, he has been inside a Pakistani prison since 2023 amid ongoing legal cases, and the former Pakistan Prime Minister does not have basic facilities like books, as claimed by his family. Recently, Michael Atherton also interviewed Imran Khan’s sons on the sidelines of the Lord’s Test between England and Pakistan, following which the PCB threatened to pull out of the fixture.
However, Sky Sports went ahead and aired the 18-minute long clip, in which Sulaiman and Kasim alleged unfair treatment, revealing how their father was not being given proper medical facilities.
Holding, who played against Imran during their international careers, said that he found the situation deeply distressing.
“I’ll mention one name, Imran Khan, but you probably don’t want to go down the political route, and I don’t want to either, but that’s a sad story. become one of the former Pakistan captain’s defining legacies. I played with Imran, I wouldn’t say I played a lot. I played some one-day games with him. I played county cricket, a few games against Imran, but apart from playing with Imran, I have spent time with Imran,” Holding told Sports Now.
“When Imran was going around London looking to garner funds for that cancer hospital, I went around with him, I tried to support him as best as I possibly could, where that was concerned. So I know the man, and I know exactly what type of person that he is. And it’s extremely sad to see the situation now and what is going on with Imran Khan,” the 72-year-old recalled.
‘I know the man’
Holding, who used to be a tearaway quick back in the day, also expressed his support for a recent appeal from former cricket captains seeking appropriate medical care and access to family for Imran. He said that the issue should be considered from the perspective of basic human rights rather than political differences.
Holding also questioned why Imran, who remains one of Pakistan’s most recognisable figures internationally, was being subjected to what he described as unacceptable treatment.
“I am in total support of the captains who wrote that letter. I don’t know what effect it will have, but I am in total support of trying to get the man to be treated just like another human being. You don’t treat human beings that way. People who have committed murder aren’t treated that way. So I don’t see the reason why this man should be treated that way,” Holding said.
“I don’t know if there’s jealousy involved in this, because Imran Khan. I don’t think there’s a Pakistani that is more well known around the world than Imran Khan. That is ridiculous, the way the man is being treated,” he added.
