KARACHI: Legendary fast bowler Imran
Khan said on Sunday that Pakistani players had suffered “insulting treatment” at
the hands of the Indian Premier League, and no player should take part in the
tournament.

Eleven top Pakistani cricketers were up for grabs at the
Indian Premier League (IPL) auction in mid-January but none were picked,
sparking outrage in Pakistan and accusations against arch-rival India of
political meddling.

“IPL did injustice to Pakistani players – in fact
it was insulting treatment meted out to players who are world champions, and we
should never send our players to the league,” said Khan, a former captain turned
politician.

“Pakistani cricketers are the best in the world and the
PCB should protest this with the Indian Board and boycott the IPL,” he
said.

“They totally disrespected the Pakistani players. If they had
security problems they should have dealt with them before the
auction.”

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has already revoked
permission for players to feature in the third edition of the IPL in
March-April, while PCB chief Ijaz Butt has also said the nation’s cricketers are
banned from the tournament.

Former players have demanded that the
national hockey team boycott the upcoming World Cup in New Delhi in protest,
while Pakistan’s sports minister complained to his Indian
counterpart.

Former players and politicians have also called for a
boycott of the 2011 cricket World Cup, jointly hosted by India, Sri Lanka and
Bangladesh.

“We should play in the World Cup, even if we have to play
in India, because the World Cup is a global event and if we don’t play, our
cricket will suffer badly,” said Khan, one of the top four all-rounders to play
the game.