‘He Is a National Hero, Why Is He in Jail?’ Javed Miandad Gets Emotional While Speaking About Imran Khan

ISLAMABAD: Former Pakistan cricket great Javed Miandad became emotional while speaking about his longtime teammate and former prime minister Imran Khan, calling him a “national hero” and appealing for the issues surrounding him to be resolved so that he could be released from prison.

“I want to say to Pakistan: resolve all the issues, then do whatever you have to do. There is no need to keep him in jail. He is someone’s son,” Miandad said during a recent interview.

Miandad said he repeatedly wondered what was happening to Imran Khan, describing him as both a national hero and a former teammate with whom he had spent years playing cricket.

“I know Imran Khan. He is an honest man, he is not corrupt. If he were corrupt, he would have accumulated properties,” Miandad said, adding that he could not understand what harm would come from releasing him.

The former batsman became visibly emotional while discussing Imran Khan’s circumstances in prison. “When I think about him and what is happening to him in jail, it hurts me deeply. You have made me emotional. I can only pray for him,” he said.

Miandad and Imran Khan shared a celebrated cricketing partnership, particularly during Pakistan’s historic 1992 World Cup campaign. Under Imran Khan’s captaincy, Pakistan defeated strong teams including England, New Zealand and Australia to win the country’s first-ever Cricket World Cup, with Miandad among the captain’s most trusted teammates.

Although both players later retired from cricket and pursued separate paths, their mutual respect remained intact.

Miandad said there had never been any personal rivalry or hostility between him and Imran Khan. “There was no rivalry between us. We came to play for Pakistan. I never spoke against Imran Khan. We had a very good relationship and spent a great deal of good time together,” he said.

He urged that the matters concerning Imran Khan be resolved properly, saying the former captain deserved fair treatment.

The partnership between Imran Khan and Javed Miandad during the 1992 World Cup remains one of the most cherished chapters in Pakistan cricket history. On this occasion, however, Miandad’s voice reflected not the excitement of cricket, but deep concern and helplessness over the situation facing his former teammate.