— PHOTO: AFP

HAPPIER CIRCUMSTANCES: The newly-appointed PCB chairman Nasim Ashraf (right) seems to have persuaded Younis Khan back to accepting captaincy.

ISLAMABAD: Younis Khan was reappointed as Pakistan cricket captain Saturday, just hours before the squad's departure to India for the ICC Champions Trophy.

The move came a day after the resignation of Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Shaharyar Khan.

Khan was replaced as chairman by Nasim Asharf, who met with the Pakistan team members in the eastern city of Lahore before naming Younis Khan as captain.

``I have appointed Younis Khan as captain, and Mohammed Yousuf will be the vice captain,'' Asharf told a news conference.

Yousuf was originally named skipper on Thursday after Younis Khan refused to accept the position, saying he didn't want to become a ``dummy captain.''

On Saturday, Younis Khan said he had agreed to lead the team in the ``best interests of Pakistan.''

Yousuf, who also attended the news conference, smilingly said he too had accepted his new position.

``I will extend full cooperation to the captain, as I did in the past,'' he said.

Earlier, Shaharyar Khan told reporters he had decided to step down as PCB chairman due to ``personal reasons,'' but refused to elaborate.

Ashraf said he would not tolerate any kind of politics in the Pakistan cricket during his tenure and urged the players to ``stay united.''

``Your unity is your strength,'' he told the squad before its departure for India.

Younis Khan captain's Pakistan in the absence of regular skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq, who was banned for four limited-overs internationals on charges of bringing the game into disrepute during the now infamous Oval Test against England in August.

— AP

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