Why Younis Khan can’t return as a captain?
on November 16th, 2009 at 2:53 pmAfter quitting captaincy for the fourth time it is highly improbable that Younis Khan will return as captain in the Australian series.
His chance of returning as a player and as a captain hinges upon Pakistan team’s performance in the test series against New Zealand, if the team failed under Mohammad Yousaf and YK’s replacement also failed to score runs then Younis might have a chance to make a comeback.
Whether Younis makes a return as a player or as a captain it will be disasterous for Pakistan cricket unless the core issue of power struggle between players is taken care of by PCB.
I have no doubt in my mind that YK will be able to regain his form and will qualify to return as a player but if this happens then imagine the environment in the dressing room, it will be extremely tense, there wll be a trust deficit between him and the captain which will eventually result in finger pointing and a constant source of bickering. A new power struggle will begin, new groups will form and new controversies will emerge and once again Pakistan cricket will become the casuality of infighting and power struggle between the players.
If he returns as a captain it will definitely piss off Mohammad Yousaf and a few other players and again some players will not co-operate with Younis in an effort to derail his captaincy.
It’s a catch 22 situation for PCB with only one way out, they will have to break the back of player’s power and weed out the corrupt and rogue elements within the team, at least two main characters of the revolt against Younis Khan should be permanently sidelined and a clear message should be sent to the players that no rogue behaviour will be tolerated.
PCB could have avoided this self created mess if they had taken appropriate measures after the Srilankan series. But YK’s poor personal form didn’t helped him either. It would have been extremely hypocritical of PCB to drop Yousaf, Afridi or Malik on the basis of performance as they all performed better than Younis Khan in every series played during the last one year. Personally I don’t think that Younis would have quitted this time if he was scoring runs.
To end this rift and make a new start PCB will have to get rid of the under performers they should select a backup keeper for every series and should adopt the policy of selection based on performance and not seniority. But such rationality cannot be expected of an organization which has a long history of sweeping all the problems under the carpet.
My prediction is that PCB will send Younis as a player to Australia after he refuses to take over captaincy once again, none of the trouble makers will get dropped and a fresh season of the eternal soap opera of Pakistan cricket will kick off. YK will score a few runs in Australia to prove a point, Malik will twist his ankle and will pull out from the Australian tour in an effort to save his career. The team will come back badly beaten a new selection committee will be appointed and PCB will start looking for a new captain.
Any suggesstions who should be our future captain?
But
Hahaaaaa!
Stani
Once Omar sharif the comedian was interviewing Musarat Shaheen the pushtoo film actress and asked her about her age, she said she was in her mid 20′s to which Omer Sharif remarked.” Aap ke haan calendar nahin hotey” I think Younis Khan kay haan bhi calendar nahin hotey:)
Wasim,
hahahaha!
After couple of years, may be he will be 28
Yes, his age is wrong on cricinfo. I noticed when he said it once in an after match interview. “Give his comments on team performance”?! O no! Just what we needed. Surely we have enough of those in our country.
I really can’t wait for the Aus series. It will be interesting to see what happens….off the pitch!
Stani
After couple of years he will be too old to play cricket, YK had his own web site two years ago and you wont believe it he was 34 back then according to his own statement he said that his age was wrong on cricinfo and PCB’s web site.
Anyways, I think he will have no problem in coming back as a player for the Australian series, I read his own statement in one of the newspaper where he said that he might not take the captaincy back but will comeback as a player as cricket is his bread & butter, meanwhile he will sit outside and give his comments on the team’s performance.
You know what this means.
Wasim,
I wouldn’t be surprised if the guy just walked out on International cricket as a whole, seriously. If he does do that, he’ll probably come back couple of years down the line when we have a different administration.
I cant see him going back into that team not as captain, this soon after what happened. It would be a highly uncomfortable situation and not an environment from which to produce a winning side.
I have posted a series of related articles to the post. “The Jokes on Pakistan ” is a must read.
Will Yousuf succeed where Younis ‘failed’
By Khalid H Khan
You can always bet that Pakistan cricket will never be short of controversies. The rumpus created by Younis Khan’s decision to abdicate the reins of leadership for the sake of ‘taking time off from the sport’ is simply too hard to digest at a juncture when the national team is embarking upon an assignment which is going to be a tough test of its character in the coming months.
It’s unfortunate that Younis, who otherwise is one of the most decent sportsmen with no malice towards anyone, has to give in to the player-power politics that has been one of the reasons why Pakistan cricket is notorious for its inconsistency and unpredictability.
Critics, of course for the time being, are going to have a field day until the dust settles over the latest controversy.
Ijaz Butt, the Pakistan Cricket Board chairman, in an abrupt statement on Wednesday announced Mohammad Yousuf as the successor to Younis for the New Zealand Tests.
He also remarked that the cricket board had no objection to Younis asking to be rested from the New Zealand tour.
But the PCB chief was unwilling to admit that Pakistan cricket, not for the first time, is facing serious crisis.
The revolt against captaincy has happened on several occasions in the past and the current scenario appears to be no different as like in the past there appears to be no strict team management to curb this disruptiveness.
Javed Miandad had to relinquish the job shortly after the Australian tour in 1981-82 when almost the entire squad, instigated by Majid Khan and vice-captain Zaheer Abbas, went against their young skipper.
Some 11 years later Miandad was again forced to resign which culminated in Wasim Akram becoming Pakistan captain. And guess what followed? Wasim, too, succumbed to the malignant player-power politics.
Younis, who reluctantly agreed to take over when Ijaz Butt offered him the captaincy after Shoaib Malik was found wanting some 10 months ago, was never really allowed to settle down into the job by a group of players with vested interests.
The catastrophic batting display in the last One-day International against the Black Caps in Abu Dhabi this week was a clear indication that disgruntled group of players had only one agenda — to make sure Younis was shown the door by the powers-that-be.
The PCB’s decision to appoint Yousuf as captain is not only hasty but also questionable because he was the same man who the then PCB chief Dr Nasim Ashraf overlooked in the aftermath of Inzamam-ul-Haq’s retirement following the shameful first-round exit from the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies.
Yousuf, obviously disillusioned by Shoaib Malik succeeding Inzamam as Pakistan captain and his subsequent exclusion from the squad for the inaugural World Twenty20 in South Africa, opted to join the rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) before pulling out after the PCB persuaded him to cancel the ICL contract.
However, he did eventually join the ICL a year ago while publicly citing that he was not prepared to play under Malik’s captaincy.
It was only after the PCB granted amnesty to the ICL players that Yousuf was able to walk back into the squad for the tour of Sri Lanka last June.
This evil curse of player-power will obviously be playing on Yousuf’s mind as well, despite him being a vastly experienced campaigner who has had his own share of ups and downs in an otherwise illustrious career as one of the finest batsmen produced by this country.
Without being disrespectful to Yousuf, it’s a point worth noting that probably the most lethargic fielder in the current national team will lead the country while his deputy Kamran Akmal is a man who is known for ruining Pakistan’s victory hopes by crucial mistakes behind the timber.
Where will Yousuf hide himself on the field will make compelling viewing on TV sets during the coming Tests in New Zealand!
There is no guarantee that Yousuf will continue to lead Pakistan if the results of New Zealand Tests are not favourable enough.
Moreover, it is also very unlikely that the PCB would fall back on Younis given the swiftness of Ijaz Butt’s actions the other day in naming Yousuf as his successor.
In the given scenario, yet another captain is likely to emerge on the surface for the Australia tour which follows immediately after the NZ series. So don’t rule out the name of Misbah-ul-Haq just yet!
History repeats itself — thanks to hidden hands of cricket
By Rashid Latif
Whatever happened lately with Younis Khan is not a new thing in Pakistan cricket. This tussle between the players, the officials and the cricket board is an ongoing process.
Sometimes a captain bears the brunt, at other times an official comes in the line of fire.
But there are other forces too that, unfortunately, govern the game in our country. The hidden hands that come into action the moment they see a captain settling down and doing his job sincerely.
Starting from 1992, after the famous World Cup triumph in Australia, a bunch of players showed resentment over Imran Khan’s attitude and vowed not to let Imran lead the side on the England tour that followed.
The players believed that Imran’s focus was now the upcoming Shaukat Khanum Hospital and he would be more keen to raise funds during the England tour than concentrate on the game.
Amid that pressure, Imran finally backed off and Javed Miandad was appointed as captain.
Soon afterwards, though, Miandad was also removed to accommodate yet another skipper, Wasim Akram.
This triggered off a bitter row between the players which culminated in a revolt against Wasim who was then replaced by Salim Malik. The uneasy relationship between the players, however, continued.
Not so far back, in 2000, Moin Khan was given the charge of Pakistan cricket team.
However, after developing serious difference with the board, Moin was forced to pass the mantle to Waqar Younis who tried his best to bring some method to the madness but he too, met the same fate and was forced to quit after the 2003 World Cup.
I took over from where Waqar left with the team going through a rebuilding phase. But just when things were progressing, the love-hate relation between the board and myself turned ugly and I too was shown the door.
Burly Inzamam-ul-Haq was now handed the honour to lead the national side but, with problems galore, Inzamam after sometime started to show his muscle to the board which, coupled with the 2007 World Cup disaster, eventually resulted in his ouster.
After Inzamam’s departure the board opted for Younis Khan but he refused captaincy while Mohammed Yousuf was ignored as leadership candidate, for reasons best known to the PCB.
Finally, young Shoaib Malik was asked to do the job. Yet again, the hidden hands came into action and, subsequently, Younis Khan was named to lead the national side.
Under Younis, the team took off superbly, winning the World Twenty20 as well as reaching the Champions Trophy semi-finals. But things are again starting to go wrong and have forced Younis to take a break from international cricket.
One wonders how long this bitterness between the captain and a few others will last but the fact that it is beginning to hurt Pakistan cricket is for all to see.
The big question is how long will these hidden quarters be allowed to make or break the team in Pakistan? They throw their weight when a makeshift opener is accommodated but when specialist openers are picked, these very forces take a U-turn and slight the captain for the move.
The same is the case with playing the younger players or resting the experienced ones.
When the younger players are provided with an opportunity, these forces jump to the defence of seniors and question their omission? And when the younger players are given the backseat to accommodate the stalwarts, these very forces make life hell for the selectors and the captain?
I strongly feel that in order to curb this nasty practice — of imposition of respective agendas by some quarters — the cricket board must be firm and should back the captain all the way.
Not just captains but the coaches have also been dealt roughly by these quarters, without any dignity. What happened with Waqar Younis during his tenure as bowling coach?
He worked so hard with the faster bowlers and really checked the no-ball disease. Yet he was removed unceremoniously and under tremendous pressure.
Lately, Australia’s Geoff Lawson was removed in much the similar manner. The work he did with the players was beginning to show some results — the new and improved Shahid Afridi being the prime example, but the hidden hands influenced the board to axe him on a week’s notice.
Now Yousuf has been given the responsibility, but will that be effective as damage control measure? Who can guarantee that he will keep these conniving hidden hands at bay for long?
As they say that the future is planned in the present, the strategists must plan for the future and must workout who will takeover after Yousuf or Younis before the hidden hands strike again.
The Joke’s on Pakistan
By Imran Yousaf
There is a mythology about Pakistan cricket which is often swallowed whole even by those normally allergic to hazy romanticism. Something about our team being mercurial, passionate, and above all instinctive. It’s all very exciting, apparently. Lots of thrills and spills. (Spills aplenty if Salman Butt is fielding.) And so it goes, that Pakistan cricket is a fascination, an eternal conundrum. The riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma concealed within a murky crotch guard.
Well, frankly, balls to that. I’ve had enough and I don’t buy it anymore. Let’s discard the ethereal mumbo jumbo and get down to the facts, the material, the bodily. Shahid Afridi play-slapped Saeed Ajmal in the first Twenty20 against New Zealand but caught the poor offspinner under the eye with a stray fingernail. And that’s how I feel: cut up. Fingered, nailed, screwed over. Following my team of late has been a serious pain in the Ijaz (I allude here, of course, to Butt the Bigger.)
So let’s get real. The myths have grown old, tired, and untrue. Like we did with Thor, Zeus, and Sohail Khan’s talent, we the human race must stop seeing things that don’t exist. Too often we look upon Pakistan cricket as some kind of enchanting, exotic, unfolding narrative of the “heat and dust” variety. Cunning and plotting is just part of the wily native’s repertoire, brainless batting is just an expression of uninhibited physicality, serial no-balling is just a natural indifference towards imposed rules and regulations.
It’s time to call a spade a shovel and bury our illusions. Pakistan cricket is not a mystery, it has become a farce. I do not ignore our moments of glory in the darkness (World Twenty20 win, recent victory over India, the wonder that is Mohammed Aamer), it’s just that these have been eclipsed. Our demeanour is Peter Sellers in The Party, not Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights. Our exuberance carries the surface jest of Govinda, not the hidden depths of Amitabh Bachchan. We’re only good for cheap laughs, not curiosity and admiration. We belong in a bad newspaper comic strip, not a dark, brilliant graphic novel.
I stare, baffled and bored, as the absurdity of it all reveals itself over and over again with the eternal recurrence of resignations and infighting
This isn’t a problem in itself. (Indeed, Wuthering Heights is a total snooze, and boy, can that Govinda shake his thing.) The issue is that the joke’s always on us: characters in a farce are laughed at, not with. What doubly sucks is that the joke’s gone stale. It’s really not funny anymore.
Here’s new captain Mohammad Yousuf, among the alleged plotters in the downfall of Younis Khan, speaking yesterday: “My main target is to unite the team because our religion also teaches us to unite for a cause and the New Zealand tour will be a tough task for us.” As ever, the jokes write themselves in Pakistan cricket, but when irony is as obvious and glaring as that, nobody’s even raising a smirk.
I wish I could say “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore”, like Peter Finch in Network. At least there’d be some animation to my frustration. But all I’m left with is feeling like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. I stare, baffled and bored, as the absurdity of it all reveals itself over and over again with the eternal recurrence of resignations, infighting, and – lest we forget some cricket actually happens sometimes – defeat.
It’s one thing being desensitised to the violence paralysing the country on an almost daily basis, but to the plight of my beloved Pakistan cricket team too? I never thought I’d see the day that happened. Trouble is, it happens so very, very often. Even the best jokes don’t bear multiple tellings.
Imran Yusuf is a writer and editor. He lives in Karachi
SP
Slight correction, anything except rationality:)
anything is possible in love… war and pak cricket…