The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Younis appointed vice-captain

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Thursday, Nov 01, 2007
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Younis appointed vice-captain

‘The pressure is very high while playing in India’

LAHORE: Pakistan on Wednesday appointed Younis Khan as deputy to captain Shoaib Malik for the tour of India starting later this week.

Younis replaces opener Salman Butt, who lost his place in the final eleven because of poor batting form. Butt did not play in any of the five-match one-day series against South Africa.

The 29-year-old Younis refused to lead Pakistan when he was offered the captaincy following Inzamam-ul-Haq’s resignation in March this year. He cited personal reasons for not accepting the role.

Inzamam resigned following Pakistan’s first-round exit from the World Cup held in the Caribbean earlier this year.

Younis accepted the vice-captaincy role after a meeting with the PCB chairman Nasim Ashraf last week. He has led Pakistan in two Tests, winning one and losing the other.

Younis has also led Pakistan in six one-day internationals.

Pakistan flies out to India on Thursday to play five one-day internationals and three Tests. The first one-day will be played at Guwahati on Monday.

‘A mistake’

Meanwhile, Younis Khan believes India has made a mistake by omitting former captain Rahul Dravid for their first two one-day internationals.

“Dravid has led from the front and he is a fantastic player,” Younis said.

“If India doesn’t perform well in the first two games the blame game will start, and their selectors and team will come under more pressure. It is to our advantage.”

Younis said the series would be a defining one for the younger players and those still establishing themselves in the team.

“The pressure is very high playing in India. People have a lot of expectations from you and the media attention and hype is also great,” he said.

“It is a make or break tour for the players,” Younis added. — Agencies

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