A group of 21 former international cricket captains, including India’s Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar, made an official appeal to Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, requesting ‘humane treatment and proper medical care for Imran Khan.’
The statement, released on August 23, read, “Six months ago, fourteen former international cricket captains wrote to you and the Pakistani government appealing for humane treatment and proper medical care for Imran Khan. We wrote then not as politicians, but as former colleagues and rivals who share a bond forged on the cricket field — one that transcends the borders and disputes that too often divide countries. We write again now — joined by seven further former captains -because of what has reportedly just occurred.”
The appeal from the captains’ community came after Khan’s court-mandated medical check-up was interfered with by the Pakistan government. The request from the group had three major points:
- That the medical board directed by the Supreme Court — including Mr Khan’s own doctors — be permitted to complete a full and independent assessment of his health, particularly the reported loss of vision in his right eye.
- That the weekly family visits reinstated by the Court be honoured without interruption or administrative delay.
- That whatever the outcome of that medical assessment, the treatment recommended by it be provided without delay.
The rest of the appeal read as follows: “Imran Khan is 73 years old and has now spent more than three years in custody. Whatever the legal and political arguments surrounding his case, the basic decency of ensuring a court-ordered medical process is actually completed is not, in our view, a controversial request.
“It is one we believe every nation that plays this game would recognise as fair. We hope this matter can be resolved expeditiously and with the dignity Mr Imran Khan deserves.”
The list of captains who co-signed the appeal
Michael Atherton, Alex Blackwell, Allan Border, Michael Brearley, Greg Chappell, Ian Chappell, Belinda Clark, Sir Alastair Cook, Sunil Gavaskar, Lee Germon, Adam Gilchrist, David Gower, Kim Hughes, Nasser Hussain, Sir Clive Lloyd, Kapil Dev, Nikhanj Deshamanya, Arjuna Ranatunga, Sir Andrew Strauss, Dilip Vengsarkar, Stephen Waugh, John Wright.
Published on Aug 23, 2026
