LONDON: Pakistani international batsman Haider Ali has been exonerated in a supposed rape case after Greater Manchester Police concluded there was insufficient evidence to support the claims made by a British-Pakistani girl.
Sources from Greater Manchester Police and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) exclusively informed Geo News that the case against Ali has been closed because of a lack of evidence to back the claims.
Ali was represented by criminal law specialist Barrister Moeen Khan.
The batter was being investigated following allegations from a British-Pakistani woman who claimed he raped her at a hotel in Manchester. On August 4, the police were informed and detained the 24-year-old cricketer on that very day.
The woman informed the police that she initially encountered Ali on July 23, 2025, at a hotel in Manchester where the supposed incident occurred. She mentioned they encountered each other once more on August 1 in Ashford, approximately four hours by train from Manchester.
She submitted her complaint four days later — about two weeks following the initial meeting.
Police sources informed Geo News that Ali is now permitted to exit the country. He has already retrieved his passport from the police station and is free to travel from the UK whenever he desires.
In his police interview, Ali refuted the claim of rape. He informed investigators that he was well acquainted with the woman and that they were friends, remarking that the allegation surprised him.
Ali was apprehended at the Spitfire County Cricket Ground in Kent, in the players’ canteen, and transported to Canterbury Police Station by officers from Kent Police.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced that Ali was temporarily suspended for the length of the criminal inquiry.
Since his debut in 2020, Ali has played for Pakistan in 35 T20 internationals and also participated in two one-day internationals.
