The three cricketers at the centre of spot fixing allegations slipped back into Pakistan early this morning, avoiding angry scenes at Lahore airport where protesters gathered with rotten eggs and placards. Team captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammed Asif and Mohammed Amir were led from their plane to a waiting bus and driven away through a cargo entrance within minutes of landing.
Their lawyers earlier said they had promised to co-operate with police investigations and would return to the United Kingdom if required.The three have already been suspended by the International Cricket Council and charged under its anti-corruption code.
They arrived home aboard a Kuwait Airways flight shortly after 4am in an attempt to avoid an angry confrontation.
An airport official said the three were in good spirits when they arrived.
"They were smiling and relaxed and were so fresh," he said. "Their body language was very positive. It seemed as if they had done something really great." A handful of protesters had waited for hours to greet their arrival. Some waved shoes while others brought rotten eggs.
Their numbers were soon swelled by taxi drivers and airport staff who started up an ironic chant of "Long live thieves and gamblers".
Malik abdul Ghaffar, 67, who travelled 50 miles with his son, brother-in-law and two nephews, said the players should be banned for life.
"They are traitors. They have brought a bad name to our country. They have destroyed our cricket," he said clutching a basket of eggs and putrid tomatoes.
"Their motive is wealth and only wealth." Police had to intervene at one stage to separate the demonstrators from a crowd made up of players' friends and relatives.
They tried to blame the English media for setting up the three cricketers.
They brought their own pro-player placards to the arrivals hall of Lahore airport, chanting and carrying posters of Butt that read: "Long live Salman Butt" and "Down to English media".
Shabat Basharat, 30, said: "They are our heroes and keep in mind that nothing has been proved against them. If they have done something wrong Scotland Yard would never allow them to return to Pakistan.
"We have come here to show our solidarity with the players." Scotland Yard detectives questioned the three over claims in the News of The World newspaper that they took money to deliberately bowl no-balls in a Test match at Lord's last month.
The players, who have denied any wrongdoing, were released without charge after being quizzed at a London police station on September 3.
Pakistani interior minister Rehman Malik said the players had returned home for Eid after requests from their parents and the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Pakistan cricket has been beset by one crisis after another – from repeated match fixing allegations to drug use and ball tampering.
The latest scandal has unleashed an outpouring of anger at players many believe have let down their country at a time of national emergency, just as Pakistan was dealing with the worst floods in its history.
Angry fans threw tomatoes at donkeys named after the players as news of the spot-fixing broke.
The team and its management also face a summons to Lahore High Court where a lawyer has filed a petition accusing them of treason – a crime that carries the death penalty.
When Ijaz Butt, the team manager, returned to Pakistan earlier in the week he was greeted by cries of "Shame" and one demonstrator threw a shoe at him.
This time the Pakistan Cricket Board took no chances.
"To avoid any untoward situation, the players were sent home with security from a separate cargo gate," an airport official said.
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