Pakistan blind cricket captain “accidentally consumed phenyl”
Zeeshan Abbasi. -Photo courtesy PBCC
BANGALORE: The captain of Pakistan’s blind cricket team, Zeeshan Abbasi, needed hospital treatment on Saturday after drinking cleaning fluid that he mistook for mineral water at his hotel in India.
Doctors examined Abbasi, a fast bowler who is leading Pakistan’s team in the Blind World Twenty-20 World Cup Cricket Tournament in the southern city of Bangalore, and pronounced him fit to play.
“The cricketer accidentally consumed phenyl” from a plastic bottle at his hotel in the city, doctor Naresh Shetty told AFP. “He mistook the phenyl bottle for a water bottle.”
Phenyl is a fluid widely used to clean and disinfect bathrooms and public spaces.
“We examined him and have administered some medicines. Abbasi is totally fit to play and has been discharged from the hospital,” Shetty said.
The 28-year-old, who made his international debut in 2000, drank the cleaning fluid, which was diluted with water, during breakfast, local media reports said.
The doctor added that police were questioning housekeeping staff about how the incident had occurred and that the hotel had apologised to the player.
Chairman Blind Cricket Council Sultan Shah called the event an accident and said it “will not become an impediment in Indo-Pak cricket relations”.
“However, what we want to know from the hotel management, who have orally apologised to us, is how such an incident happened and who is responsible for such negligence,” Shah said, according to the Press Trust of India.
Pakistan’s blind team defeated India on Friday by eight wickets in the Twenty-20 tournament.
The incident comes as India and Pakistan are gearing up to play their first cricket series since ties were broken after the deadly 2008 attacks in Mumbai.
India is to host Pakistan for two T20 internationals and three 50 over matches from December 25, beginning in Bangalore. Matches will also be held in Ahmedabad, Chennai, Kolkata and the last game will be played in New Delhi on January 6.
i am sorry on behalf of my country. I am ashamed for what happened. For what ever the apology is worth accept it.
That’s not your fault. Many such isolated unfortunate events never necessarily represent country’s value.
Your true liberal Pakistani,Thank you my dear friend for your consolation, but such things are quiet common in Pakistan and appears to others especially India as a country’s values.
Excuse me? You’re apologizing ‘on behalf of your country’?? For what? Read the local papers of Bangalore. The team was not supposed to be having breakfast on the terrace where this occured. The housekeeping staff were still cleaning the place. This was an accident. The hotel has apologized. The staff member has come forward and apologized. Why are you dragging the entire country into this? And who gave you the authority to apologize on ‘behalf of the country’????????
In India cleaning staff uses mineral water bottles to keep soap solution. There is a hole in the cap through which soap solution oozes out and is used to clean floors and furniture. It is probable that a bottle was mistakenly left on the table. It is also possible that someone left it by design on the table. I support an investigation in which Pakistanis should also be involved. This is a shameful incident and a thorough investigation is warranted.
Sincere apologies from us Indians. No one in the right sense would resort to such a heinous act ,whether to the blind or to normal human beings. Goes without saying , such instances however rare they may be , are not representative of our feelings and attitude to Pakis.
Indians have dented their reputation by doing such a disgraceful act and honestly i was not expecting the Indians to go that low.
Get a grip man.
Well then call back your team, but they wont go because money is here.
i smell some dirty conspiracy…
I smell some phenyl. Blind people generally enhanced senses.other than sight. Phenyl has a distinct odor. I smell a rat.
Had it been in Pakistan, with any team, world would have turned upside down by now!!!
you are right, we are ashamed, sorry.
It might be an attempt to stir trouble by the right wing in India, given that Pakistan is going to play after a long time in India. It is subverting the improving relations. Indian authorities must investigate it thoroughly to come clean and punish the culprits so our relations are not jeopardized.
Shocking- What was acid kept in first place General Manager and owner should be arrested
show some guts and come back home
Action of some nuts, doesn’t reflect the feelings of whole nation. Majority of them might be against Pakistanis playing there, but the majority I have been in contact with, will definitely not stoop so low.
I am sorry you feel that way. yes majority of Indians do not want contact with Pakistan, however, once the team is there, then they are our guests, I am ashamed we could not look after our guests. I am very sorry.
I am feeling extremely hurt by this behavior of the hotel staff.There must be an independent investigation.There must be a standard rule given to hotel staff by the government to avoid such shameful events in future.
people from across border usually comment quite enthusiastically passing judgements on everything Pakistani … interesting to note the silence now!
Dear Indians, is this the way to treat your guests? is this the way you treat your disabled ?? I am disgusted
stop begging them to play you
Then why do your people keep coming here, call everybody back call rameez raza and waseem akram, adnan sami and others also
Fact is It was not acid but a soap solution kept on the table which is use to clean the table.
dear that’s the statement given by the hotel management, should one trust them? and i heard its a hotel of some repute..
Yeah, in a mineral water bottle my innocent friend.
why has dawn edited my comment so now the whole message is changed!
Aman ki Asha…..HATE THIS, THEY ARE NOT OUR FRIEND
Indian cannot take defeat, like men.
What kind of sick minded people are there in India, trust me if that had happened with an Indian player in Pakistan, Indian war hysterics might have started talking of a surgical strike!
Its terrible. If it so happens in a five star hotel. God take care of the rest. It is simply a criminal act.
It was not a 5 star hotel. It was a soap star hotel or a soap opera or soup opera?
What a Soft story by DAWN!!! If Taliban has done it to the Indian or the Pakistan team, I am sure DAWN Newspaper would have by now written 10 Editorials apart from minute to minute live updates. What a shame! It is a grave incident!
Its unnatural for a acid bottle to be given to blind instead of mineral water.Yes Investigation has to be conducted and truth should be ascertained whether a conspiracy was hatched by some one.I think innocents should not be confused for terrorists.The cricketers are come into India in a legal way having visa permission from government of India.Some of the Indians have to be educated that all Pakistanis are not kasabs or hafeez syed, osama bin laden or mullah omar.
As an Indian I pray for his health and speedy recovery to god.God bless him and give peace to his parents.I ask all Indians to pray for his health and recovery.
I also want to ask Chairman Blind Cricket Council Sultan Shah where was he and what was he doing when the unfortunate incident took place.
this needs an international independent investigation
Even if he was not blind he probably could not have told the difference. So much for aman ki asha. I dont think Pakistan’s team should be going to India this month. Obviously they are not welcome there. If they feel they must go then they should take their own bottled water with them.
Imran, we are a nation of apologists. Don’t expect anything will happen on this issue. Our cricket chief sent a ‘get well soon’ message to Bal Thakray a few weeks ago. I fail to understand what PCB would have gained by wishing BT well. Wasn’t it better to just be quiet. It seems people at the helm of cricket affairs have no sense of responsibility and are ignorant of sensibilities of a nation and are good at further embarrassing an already defeated and low-spirited nation. Shameful. Insensitive. Totally non-honorificabilitudinitatibus. An insult to tax payers on whose money the PCB runs. Is PCB chief polishing his skills of diplomacy? Is he the next ambassador to England or France?
thank you for the hospitality the righteous ones.
Guys…. it was a diluted soap solution wherein scope of fatal outcomes are very thin. However this should not be an excuse.The house-keepers should be terminated & booked under law for such blunder
He was blind but blind people can smell things too. Soap has its own smell while acid(if in diluted form) lose its odour after sometime. One should not go with what the media feeds, one can use his own intellect to arrive at any position regarding any case.
For heaven’s sake man, IT WAS NOT ACID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Get a grip, use the internet, read news from its source, and you’ll find that it was an accident. But of course….it’s Pakistan.
thanks god we are in Pakistan. Shame on your Indians, pinioning a blind man.
all prayers for Zeeshan … these are the people who need to be cared for.
It is always difficult for India to accept defeat, when it comes to Pakistan. This was a very dangerous way to show its intolerance…now we all know, who is more tolerant, and who has good sports man spirit. if this incidence had happened in Pakistan, India would have got Pakistan banned forever and ever.