Seven former Australia captains raise Imran Khan welfare concerns

Seven former Australia captains have written to Foreign Minister Penny Wong urging the Australian Government to raise concerns with Pakistan over the welfare and treatment of former Pakistan Prime Minister and World Cup-winning captain Imran Khan.

Allan Border, Greg Chappell, Ian Chappell, Belinda Clark, Kim Hughes, Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh said they were writing not as political figures, but as former captains concerned about a fellow cricketer. They cited reports of limited medical care, restricted family contact and minimal access to legal counsel, while stressing that they took no position on the legal or political case against Khan.

"We take no position on the legal or political case against him. That is Pakistan's business. But the treatment of any person in detention is a matter of basic humanity, whatever their politics," stated the letter.

"This is not the first time international captains have raised this concern. It has been brought to public attention on two separate occasions in the past six months, and the reports since then - now echoed by his own family - suggest the situation has not improved," added the letter. "We would be grateful if the Australian Government could raise this directly with the relevant Pakistani authorities."

The latest appeal comes after Khan's sons, Sulaiman and Kasim, spoke to former England captain Michael Atherton in an interview broadcast by Sky Sports during the lunch break of the second England-Pakistan Test at Lord's last month. They spoke about their father's deteriorating health and conditions in detention, prompting a formal complaint from the Pakistan Cricket Board and a reported threat not to return to the field after lunch.

This is the third appeal from former international captains in seven months. In February, 14 former captains, including Sunil Gavaskar, Kapil Dev and Chappell, called for better medical care and humane detention conditions for Khan. In August, 21 former captains renewed the appeal following developments around a Supreme Court-directed medical examination and family visits.

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