 Younis Khan has changed directions again and decided to resign from the role of
a captain of the Pakistani cricket team. He spoke with the head of the Pakistan Cricket Board, Ejaz Butt, and handed him over his resignation. The
official reason that he gave was that he thought that he had lost the command
that was needed to lead the side. He has also taken a temporary break from international
cricket.
For some time, there had been a rift between the captain and some of his players.
The likes of ex-captain Shoaib Malik, captain-in-waiting, Shahid Afridi
and the ever-aspiring Mohammad Yousuf have said to have had issues with Younis
Khan, that finally culminated into his resignation. He said, "I met the
chairman today and told him I needed to rest. I told him I feel as If I have
no command over this team."
This is not for the first time that Younis Khan has quit the role. He
had been made a stand-in captain during the Champions Trophy in 2006, but quit
in haste. He was then persuaded back into the role. Even more recently, he had
quit his captaincy when he had been asked to explain the losses in the Champions Trophy to the Parliament, only to be coaxed back into it. Earlier, he had
also quit T20 cricket, but more recently had expressed his desire to return
back to the fold, probably as a captain.
However, one senses that this could be a more permanent blow to his captaincy
hopes. The reason is his age, which is almost 32. Besides, his lack of batting
form meant that he would now find it difficult to break back into the side as
a batsman either.
One must keep in mind, though, that given the drastic turnarounds in Pakistani
cricket, this may not be a far-fetched possibility.
The last straw that seemed to have broken the camel's back has been the series
loss to New Zealand. In the final game, the Pakistanis were not chasing a huge
total, but the manner in which some of the players got out left many wondering
what is happening. The shots were rash and an element of suspicion could rise
out of it.
For now, Mohammad Yousuf will lead the side in the test matches against
New Zealand, while the decision on the long-term captain will be taken after
that series. Afridi continues to lead the T20 side.
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