Mike Hesson Defends Salman Ali Agha Amid Royal Visit Controversy

Mike Hesson has hit back hard at claims that Pakistan batter Salman Ali Agha refused to meet King Charles III, branding the report “made up” and “unacceptable journalism” as Pakistan’s turbulent tour of England took another off-field twist.

The UK-based Telegraph had reported that one of the players dropped from Pakistan’s Test squad had declined to attend an audience with the monarch at Clarence House this week. Speculation quickly settled on Salman, who was left out after the second Test.

Hesson, installed as Pakistan’s interim Test coach in the middle of the series, was having none of it.

Hesson pushes back

“People are just making up stories,” Hesson said on Friday, making a point of spelling out the timeline. Salman, Imam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Rizwan, he explained, had been released from the Test squad before he even arrived and well before the Buckingham Palace and Clarence House events were finalised.

“They were sent a note at that time that these three players would not be attending Buckingham Palace,” Hesson said. “So, someone’s just made something up.”

The coach stressed there were no late snubs, no last-minute withdrawals, no quiet acts of defiance. The list for the royal engagement, he said, was settled in advance and only included players who were still part of the touring group.

“All of the rest of the players that were in the squad were already on the list. I was already on the list as the white-ball head coach, so there have been no changes to it,” he added. “It was all very straightforward. Someone’s just got two and two together and come up with nine. For me, that’s unacceptable journalism.”

In short, Salman didn’t refuse to go. He was never going.

Turmoil after heavy defeats

The row over the royal visit comes against the backdrop of a chaotic series for Pakistan. On the field, England have dominated.

At Headingley, Pakistan were thrashed by an innings and 103 runs. At Lord’s, they folded again, this time by 194 runs, handing England a 2-0 lead and the series with a Test to spare.

The Pakistan Cricket Board reacted with a sweeping overhaul. Seven players were sent home, seven replacements were summoned, and Sarfaraz Ahmed was removed as Test head coach. Hesson, already serving as the white-ball head coach, was asked to step in and steady a sinking red-ball ship.

Among those told to leave the tour were senior opener Imam-ul-Haq and Salman Ali Agha, who had captained Pakistan in the first Test at Headingley in Babar Azam’s injury-enforced absence. Rizwan was also cut as part of the clear-out.

The timing of those exits created fertile ground for rumours once images emerged of King Charles III meeting members of the Pakistan squad at Clarence House in London on Wednesday. One photograph appeared to show the monarch greeting players, with Salman pictured separately, feeding the narrative that he had chosen not to attend.

Hesson’s version leaves no such room for intrigue. In his telling, the decision was administrative, not political; logistical, not ideological.

With Pakistan reeling from two heavy defeats and a dressing room reshaped mid-tour, the last thing the new coach wants is a sideshow about who did or did not bow before the King. His message was clear: the drama is on the field, not at the palace.