Pakistan's bowling coach Waqar Younis says he saw the ball that sparked the controversy in the fourth Test between Pakistan and England straight after the match, and believes there was nothing wrong with it.
Pakistan refused to take the field after tea following umpires Darrell Hair and Billy Doctrove's decision to dock it five runs for ball-tampering, leading to the first ever forfeited Test match.
Captain Inzamam-ul-Haq will face a hearing next week to defend charges of ball tampering and bringing the game into disrepute..jpg)
At this stage, no television footage can be found of any Pakistan player tampering with the ball, and Younis says after inspecting the ball following the match he though it looked normal for a ball that had been used for 56 overs.
"I went straight into the referee's room and asked to see the ball," Waqar told the Sydney Morning Herald.
"I promise you, nothing was wrong with it."
"There were 30-odd cameras at the ground that didn't see anything, so you would think there had to be something wrong with the ball for Darrell (Hair) to do what he did."
"But I promise: I saw the ball and there was nothing wrong with it."
Younis also felt the incidents that transpired at The Oval were not good for cricket, but had not damaged Pakistan's image because they had not yet been found guilty of anything.
"It was bad for cricket, but if you ask me, it was good for our country and our reputation," Waqar added.
"It wasn't just about ball tampering. By doing what he did, (Hair) was calling the whole Pakistan team cheats, penalising us five runs with no evidence."
"That was totally wrong."
Inzamam faces a fine and possible suspension from the game if he is found guilty at the ICC hearing.
