Barely two months after being embroiled in a ball-tampering row, Pakistan were once again under the scanner when umpires called skipper Younis Khan to express concerns about the condition of the ball during their Champions Trophy match against Sri Lanka at Jaipur.
According to a report in 'The Australian', umpires - Simon Taufel and Billy Bowden - expressed concerns about the condition of the ball to Younis but decided against laying any formal charge against the sub-continental team.
Pakistan won the match by four wickets but the incident went completely unnoticed. The newspaper reported that the ICC, when contacted, refused to comment on the matter.
ICC cricket manager Dave Richardson said, "During the course of a match, umpires routinely inspect the ball and speak to the (fielding) captain."
The daily said the team might have been let off because the incident came close on the heels of the infamous Oval Test fiasco, which led to a four-ODI ban on Pakistan's regular skipper Inzamam-ul Haq.
The Oval drama had raised a major furore with both umpire Darrell Hair, who along with colleague Billy Doctrove accused Pakistan for tampering with the ball, and the PCB remaining firm on their stand.
Hair was subsequently dropped from the ICC panel of umpires for the Champions Trophy after concerns were expressed about his security in the sub-continent.
