Twenty-two former international cricket captains, including India’s Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev, have appealed to Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif over the medical treatment of jailed former prime minister and World Cup-winning captain Imran Khan.
The cricketers said they were concerned about Khan’s health and asked the Pakistani government to follow a Supreme Court order relating to his medical examination and family access. Khan, who is 73 years old, has been in prison for the past three years.
The initiative was led by former Australia captain Greg Chappell. The signatories said they were writing not as politicians, but as former cricket teammates and fellow members of the cricket community. Their letter sets out three principal demands concerning Khan’s treatment and contact with his family.
What the former captains are seeking
At the centre of the appeal is a request for an impartial medical board. The former captains want the board to be constituted in accordance with the Supreme Court’s order and to include doctors who previously treated Khan privately.
They also want the board to conduct a complete assessment of Khan’s health. Particular attention has been requested for a complaint involving reduced vision in his right eye. The letter calls for that issue to be examined seriously as part of the wider medical evaluation.
The signatories have asked for any treatment recommended after the examination to be provided without delay. Their demand covers care identified through the medical process, rather than a limited or short-term assessment.
The three requests highlighted in the appeal are:
- An impartial medical board, including Khan’s private doctors, as directed by the Supreme Court.
- A full health examination, with particular attention to the reported reduction in vision in his right eye.
- Immediate treatment wherever it is recommended, along with weekly family visits without administrative obstruction.
Dispute over the court order
The appeal refers to an earlier Supreme Court direction that Khan’s medical examination should be conducted by a designated board. The court had also allowed his family to meet him in prison every week.
According to the former captains’ letter, Khan was taken to hospital only for a few hours. They said he was examined only by government doctors and was subsequently declared medically fit before being returned to Adiala Jail.
The cricket figures argue that this process did not meet the requirements of the court’s order. They described the return to Adiala Jail after the examination as a direct violation of that direction and urged the government to ensure that the court’s instructions are implemented.
Their appeal therefore combines two issues: the composition and scope of the medical examination, and the arrangements governing Khan’s meetings with his family. The signatories want the family’s weekly access to continue without interference from the administration.
Captains from nine countries sign
The letter brings together former leaders from nine countries. Its Indian signatories are Sunil Gavaskar, Kapil Dev and Dilip Vengsarkar.
The other names identified among the signatories include Australia’s Allan Border, Greg Chappell and Ian Chappell; England’s Alastair Cook and Nasser Hussain; and West Indies great Clive Lloyd. Together, the former captains have used their shared cricket background to draw attention to Khan’s medical care while he remains in prison.
Khan’s own cricket career is also central to the connection described in the appeal. He was Pakistan’s former prime minister and a World Cup-winning captain, while the signatories include prominent former captains from several of the sport’s leading cricket nations.
The appeal’s focus
The former players’ intervention does not present itself as a political campaign. Instead, the letter frames the request around the responsibilities owed to a former cricket colleague and around compliance with the Supreme Court’s directions.
Its demands are specific: an independent board with access to Khan’s private doctors, a comprehensive medical assessment, urgent delivery of any recommended treatment and unhindered weekly meetings with his family. The letter places special emphasis on Khan’s reported right-eye vision problem.
The former captains’ concern follows the disagreement over whether the examination and hospital visit fulfilled the court’s instructions. They are calling on the Pakistani government to address the medical concerns through the process ordered by the Supreme Court and to respect the family-meeting provision while Khan remains at Adiala Jail.
