Cricket: Pcb Unlikely to Sue Jamaican Police Over Aftermath of Bob Woolmer's Death

The Pakistan Cricket Board insists it "fully respects" the Jamaican police verdict that Bob Woolmer died of natural causes, appearing to rule out the possibility of legal action.

PCB director of communications Dr Ahsan Hameed Malik added today: "We have been saying that Woolmer died of natural causes for quite some time now. The announcement from the Jamaican police is a big relief for all of us. It won't compensate for the loss of Woolmer, but will certainly lessen the pain."

There have been calls in some quarters, including from former Pakistan captain Imran Khan, for the PCB to "sue everyone with responsibility" over the mishandling of Woolmer's death. But PCB sources say that officials do not support the idea of taking legal action against the Jamaican police as it would ignite fresh controversy.

Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf, however, agrees with Khan that the PCB should take the matter further and at least seek compensation and an apology from the authorities in the Caribbean. "The PCB should take the legal action, but it's not up to the players," said Yousuf. "We cannot sue the Jamaican police so it is a matter to be handled by the PCB." On the treatment he and his team-mates received after Woolmer's death, Yousuf added: "It was OK and we co-operated, but we were fingerprinted and not allowed to leave, which added to our pain of being knocked out of the World Cup. We felt it was a natural death from day one and we feel the same now - the players never believed Woolmer had been murdered."

Woolmer was found unconscious in his hotel room and later died on March 18, the day after his side had been knocked out of the World Cup by Ireland. An initial pathologist's report concluded he had been strangled and the subsequent launch of a murder inquiry gave rise to rumors that he had been murdered by a match-fixing syndicate.