If seasoned allrounder Shahid Afridi gets Pakistan’s captaincy for all three formats, his biggest task will be to add a few much-needed ingredients to the country’s under-achieving Test squad.Though he is yet to be formally named Pakistan’s captain, Afridi is already making efforts to ensure that he is at the helm of a balanced team that is capable of achieving ‘respectable results’.
Sources close to him revealed to ‘The News’ on Monday that after getting ‘positive signals’ from the cricket board, Afridi has chalked out his priority list and wants to ensure that a few ‘match-winning players’, currently out of the team, are included in the touring party for the challenging tour of England. According to the sources, Afridi will be pushing for the return of experienced batsmen Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan and also wants pacer Shoaib Akhtar to make his Test return.
Afridi’s first effort, however, failed to yield the desired results. Sources said that he rang up Yousuf the other day and asked him whether he would be interested to come out of retirement and play for Pakistan on the tour of England.
“Yousuf told Afridi that he has retired and has no plans to return to international cricket,” said a source. Yousuf, 35, announced his retirement earlier this year to protest against an indefinite ban imposed on him by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). He captained Pakistan during the disastrous tour of Australia in which the tourists lost all their matches. Later, a probe committee investigating into Pakistan’s poor showing in Australia banned or fined seven of the country’s leading players including Yousuf for charges ranging from indiscipline to infighting.
Yousuf is one of Pakistan’s most successful batters with 7431 runs from 88 Tests at a healthy average of 53.07. He has also piled up 9624 runs from 282 ODIs.Apart from Yousuf, Afridi is hoping that Younis will also be cleared to play for Pakistan during the tour of England. Like Yousuf, Younis was also banned indefinitely by the PCB. The former Pakistan captain has appealed against the punishment.
“Afridi is aware that Pakistan will need their best batsmen against Australia and England and will throw his weight behind Younis’s inclusion,” said the source. Pakistan are to play two Tests against Australia followed by four more against England besides several one-day and Twenty20 games against the two sides during the tour of England that will begin end of next month and will conclude in September.
Younis, 32, is one of Pakistan’s most prolific Test batsmen with 5260 runs from 63 Tests at 50.09. His last Test appearance was in Colombo last July after which he pulled out of the Test tours of New Zealand and Australia in a bid to take a rest from international cricket.
The most controversial player on Afridi’s wish list is the enigmatic Shoaib Akhtar. Shoaib, 34, hasn’t played a Test since the Bangalore match against India in 2007. He has been plagued by injuries and disciplinary problems but Afridi believes that if Shoaib is fit and in form, he can still be a match-winner for Pakistan in England later this summer.
Shoaib, who has 178 wickets from 46 Tests, is trying his best to earn a Test recall and made his presence felt at the Pentangular Cup one-day tournament in Karachi this season. But it remains to be seen whether he is fit enough to go through the rigours of Test cricket.
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1 comments:
It is a critical point. I am hesitate to be expressive. However one should not blame on others first , if he has to regret afterwards. Cricket in this is not. I didn't see. But on Geo i heard that some videos are there which proved the doings of our heroes, like M Yousaf , Younas, etc
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