Pak caught out in ball tampering row

London: The fourth Test between England and Pakistan descended into total farce on Sunday as first Pakistan, then the umpires, refused to return to the field after tea on the fourth day following a ball-tampering storm.

Play was called off for the day as frantic discussions continued between match and board officials to try and save the match.

Pakistan's players, on course for a face-saving win in the four-match series, had been stunned during the afternoon at The Oval when Darrell Hair and fellow umpire Billy Doctrove imposed a five-run penalty for alleged ball tampering and changed the ball.

They continued playing until tea, with England on 298 for four in their second innings and still 33 runs shy of making Pakistan bat again, when the fiasco exploded.

Hair, who has been involved in several controversies with teams from the sub-continent in the past, and Doctrove walked out to the middle alone, then returned to the pavilion as Pakistan's players staged a protest by remaining in the dressing room.

The umpires walked out again 15 minutes later, this time followed by England batsmen Paul Collingwood and Ian Bell, but Pakistan again failed to show.

Wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal was clearly visible reading a newspaper without his pads on.

Things took a new turn around 45 minutes after the scheduled restart when Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq led his side out, then straight back in as the umpires this time stayed away.

Pakistan Cricket Board head Shaharyar Khan, who consulted with top England Cricket Board officials as the drama unfolded, said: "From our point of view the boys were extremely upset at the slur of what happened. They wanted to register a protest with the match offifcials. We were going to stay off for just a few minutes.

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"Then we were ready to play but now it appears that the umpires are unwilling to go ahead. We find it extraordinary. It is very sad things have come to this pass."

Deeply Aggrieved

He said Pakistan's players categorically denied they had tampered with the ball.

"No one was consulted, no one was told... they felt deeply aggrieved. We have very good relations with the England board. If this match is abandoned it will not be because of the England board but because of an incident brought to the fore by the umpires."

Large sections of the crowd remained in the ground as the confusion continued, before play was called off.

Khan said he did not know what would happen to the One-Day series against England due to start after the Tests.

Umpires have the right to award a match to the opposition if they deem a side had refused to continue playing.

England have an unassailable 2-0 series lead but are battling to avoid an innings defeat.

Pakistan were aggrieved when the umpires ruled the ball had been tampered with during the afternoon session after Alastair Cook had been bowled by a reverse-swinging yorker from pace bowler Umar Gul.

Inzamam became embroiled in a heated exchange with the umpires before the England batsmen at the crease, Kevin Pietersen and Collingwood, were allowed to choose a replacement ball.

Hair first hit the headlines when he called Sri Lanka spinner Muttiah Muralitharan for throwing in Australia in 1995-6.