Claim: Photographs show former England cricketer and journalist Michael Atherton posing with a portrait of Pakistan’s ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan amid the Lord’s controversy.
Fact: Both pictures were generated using artificial intelligence (AI) tools.
On 1 September and 29 August 2026, two photographs of former England cricketer and broadcaster, Michael Atherton, emerged on social media showing him standing — apparently at the Lord’s stadium — holding a picture of Pakistan’s incarcerated ex-PM and founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Imran Khan.
One of the pictures depicts Atherton posing with the picture by himself and the other shows him alongside someone who appears to be the former premier’s fan wearing a shirt featuring the words “Free Imran Khan.”
Screenshots of the viral posts
The first picture is accompanied by the following caption:
“مائیکل ایتھرٹن صاحب، آپ کو سلام! ❤️🇵🇰 آپ نے صرف ایک انٹرویو نہیں کیا، بلکہ ایک مظلوم کی آواز کو دنیا تک پہنچایا۔ عمران خان کے بیٹوں سلیمان اور قاسم خان کو عالمی میڈیا پر اپنی بات رکھنے کا موقع دے کر آپ نے دکھا دیا کہ سچ اور حق کی آواز کو سرحدوں میں قید نہیں کیا جا سکتا۔ آپ نے دباؤ کے باوجود وہ بات دنیا تک پہنچائی جسے دبانے کی کوشش کی جا رہی تھی۔ حق کا ساتھ دینے، مظلوم کی آواز بلند کرنے اور سچ کو دنیا کے سامنے لانے پر آپ کو سلام۔ 👏 مائیکل ایتھرٹن—آپ نے صحافت اور انسانیت دونوں کا حق ادا کیا۔ ❤️🇵🇰
[Mr Michael Atherton, I salute you! ❤️🇵🇰 You did not merely conduct an interview; you conveyed the voice of an oppressed person to the world. By giving Imran Khan’s sons, Sulaiman and Kasim Khan, the opportunity to share their perspective on a global platform, you demonstrated that the voice of truth and justice cannot be confined by borders. Despite facing pressure, you brought to light the very message that was being suppressed. I salute you for standing up for the truth, raising the voice of the oppressed, and revealing the truth to the world. 👏 Michael Atherton—you have truly honored both journalism and humanity. ❤️🇵🇰]”
Sky Sports interviews Imran Khan’s sons
On 27 August 2026, Sky Sports aired an 18-minute interview of the PTI founder’s sons, Sulaiman Isa and Kasim Khan, with Michael Atherton during the lunch interval of Pakistan and England’s test match at the Lord’s. They told him that they had not spoken to their father since March and that his family had not met him for 10 months until the week before.
The two also discussed how Khan was taken to a government medical facility instead of Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad as ordered by the Supreme Court on 18 August 2026.
On the other hand, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) — chaired by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi — lodged a formal complaint with Sky Sports. According to the BBC, it also “raised the prospect of cancelling the Test at Lord’s and the remainder of the three-match tour if the interview aired”.
However, the outlet mentioned that “a version of the interview was broadcast and the players returned to the field after the interval to continue the match”.
Cricinfo reported that the “PCB wanted to raise a complaint with the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office as well” but there was no confirmation.
Pakistan’s Information Ministry “categorically” rejected the allegations made by Kasim and Sulaiman Khan in a 29 August 2026 post on X (formerly Twitter). It said it was doing so “not only for reference and record but more importantly to underscore how fake propaganda is being intentionally pushed under an agenda through these foreign media outlets”.
Former cricket captains’ letter for Khan
On 27 August 2026, The Guardian reported, “Khan has been in solitary confinement for three years.” It added, “Lawyers have described his living conditions as slow-motion murder, his sister claimed he has been tortured and 21 former cricketers, including Atherton, have campaigned for him to be treated humanely.”
According to Cricinfo, the international cricket captains’ letter — their second appeal in six months — included three specific requests:
- “That the medical board directed by the Supreme Court – including Mr Khan’s own doctors – be permitted to complete a full and independent assessment of his health, particularly the reported loss of vision in his right eye.
- “That the weekly family visits reinstated by the Court be honoured without interruption or administrative delay.
- “That whatever the outcome of that medical assessment, the treatment recommended by it be provided without delay.”
The cricketers noted that “they do not seek to adjudicate Pakistan’s domestic legal processes”, the publication added.
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check reverse-searched both images but did not find any credible reports about such photographs of Atherton in reputable media outlets.
Suspecting that the visuals may have been created using AI tools, we ran them through Hive Detect and the results said both were 99.9% likely to be AI-generated. It specifically identified “gptimage2” as model used.
Results from Hive Detect
The “gptimage2” source refers to OpenAI’s image generation model, which is why we then ran it through the company’s own verification tool.
The OpenAI watermark detector said both pieces of content were generated using its tools and that it “found a SynthID watermark that originated from” the company’s models.
Results from OpenAI’s verification tool
We traced the image of Atherton posing with Khan’s portrait to what appears to be the original user who posted it on 28 August 2026. It was shared with an “AI content” label, indicating that it “may have been created with AI”.
We also traced the other image — featuring the former English cricketer standing with a fan in the ‘Free Imran Khan’ shirt — to the user who appears to have created it. This, too, is labelled as “AI content.”
Soch Fact Check, therefore, concludes that the two pictures featuring Atherton holding Khan’s portraits are AI-generated.
Virality
Soch Fact Check found the images shared on Facebook multiple times, with hundreds of reactions.
Two other people have also created similar AI-generated images of themselves posing with Atherton, as can be seen here on Facebook and here on X.
Conclusion: Both pictures are AI-generated.
Background image in cover photo: Cricinfo
To appeal against our fact-check, please send an email to appeals@sochfactcheck.com