April 2012 Cricket legend Tony Greig supports paedophile’s appeal bid Uday Joshi was jailed for six years in Belfast An England cricket legend is supporting a campaign calling for an appeal into the case of a former player jailed for abusing a young boy during a summer spent in Northern Ireland. Indian ex-cricketer Uday Joshi (68) was handed a six-year sentence by a Belfast court after being convicted of molesting a 13-year-old boy on a visit to the province over three decades ago. He must sign the sex offenders’ register for life and is barred from working with children. Now well-known players, including former England Test cricket captain Tony Greig, have joined the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) in supporting a campaign. Joshi’s son Aakash — who is co-ordinating the campaign — told the Belfast Telegraph he believes “there are a lot of unanswered questions”. “We feel this is a miscarriage of justice,” he added. “Now in our campaign we have all these professional players from England and players from India. “We have been working night and day on this. “I haven’t seen my father since the trial. “He’s not doing that well. “This has totally ruined us for the past two years. The pain is very much here.” Aakash said he is also in the process of setting up a campaign website. His father was given his six-year jail term after being found guilty of three offences dating back to 1979. He has maintained his innocence. A left-arm spinner for Sussex in the early 1970s, Joshi came to Northern Ireland during the summer of 1979 to play for a local club. Up until his imprisonment he had been living in the US with his family since 1997. Ian Smith is the legal director for the PCA and said there was “a lot of support” for Joshi. “The PCA is joined by a group of supporters from his days as a Sussex player. “We are very much behind it. His old colleagues are supporting him — some well-known like Tony Greig, the former England captain — and others less well-known. “The PCA are completely supportive of an appeal.”