The captain of Pakistan's blind cricket team, Zeeshan Abbasi, needed hospital treatment on Saturday after drinking cleaning fluid that he mistook for mineral water at his hotel in India. Doctors examined Abbasi, a fast bowler who is leading Pakistan's team in the Blind World Twenty20 World Cup Cricket Tournament in the southern city of Bangalore, and pronounced him fit to play.
"The cricketer accidentally consumed phenyl" from a plastic bottle at his hotel in the city, doctor Naresh Shetty told AFP. "He mistook the phenyl bottle for a water bottle." Phenyl is a fluid widely used to clean and disinfect bathrooms and public spaces. "We examined him and have administered some medicines. Abbasi is totally fit to play and has been discharged from the hospital," Shetty said.
The 28-year-old, who made his international debut in 2000, drank the cleaning fluid, which was diluted with water, during breakfast, local media reports said. The doctor added that police were questioning housekeeping staff about how the incident had occurred and that the hotel had apologised to the player. Sultan Shah, manager of the Pakistan team, called the event an accident and said it "will not become an impediment in Indo-Pak cricket relations". Pakistan's blind team defeated India on Friday by eight wickets in the Twenty20 tournament.