Akram leaves with wife’s body for Pakistan......

CHENNAI: The news about the death of Huma Akram, Pakistani cricketer Wasim AkramWasim Akram’s wife, drew a small crowd to the Apollo Hospital premises on Greams Road on Sunday morning.

Though no one was allowed inside the hospital, people were looking for cricketers who would call on Akram to pay their condolences. But with the first ODI against Australia starting in Vadodara, even players of Akram’s generation were not in town. With more newspersons arriving on the scene, Dr Venkatraman, consultant, ICU, came down to make the announcement that Huma was no more. Later, the hospital’s director of medical services, Dr Sathyabhama, issued a press note expressing ‘heartfelt condolences’ to Wasim Akram and his family.

While lensmen were ready with their cameras and some onlookers inside the compound positioned themselves close to an ambulance that ostensibly was waiting for the body to be brought out, another ambulance carrying the body to Sri Ramachandra Medical College hospital for embalming drove out through a rear gate.

After embalming, the body was taken to the airport, where the vehicle entered the cargo area around 7 pm for the 8 pm Indigo airlines flight to New Delhi. Apart from Akram, four persons left by the same flight, according to airport sources.

Akram and Huma’s brother Shahid Ameer were staying in Chennai since Tuesday after emergency visas were issued for all those who came along with her in the air ambulance that landed in Chennai for refueling enroute to Singapore from Lahore. Since an emergency visa is valid for just 72 hours, their visas were subsequently extended.

Among those who called on Akram during the week was Indian cricket star Kapil DevKapil Dev.