Younis Khan’s axing from the One-Day International (ODI) squad that is to face Australia next month, as well as for the World Cup, comes as one of the most shocking moves by the board in recent times, and only goes to portray them as a whimsical bunch that do as they please. Amit Banerjee throws more light on the controversial saga.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has maintained the image of being a controversial board for quite some time now. Issues such as corruption at the helm, mismanagement of players among many others, have been a bane for the board that governs the sport in a cricket-crazy nation. The recent axing of Younis Khan from the One-Day International (ODI) squads for the tour of Australia as well as the World Cup is but another step that the board has taken to sink itself further into the muck of bad press.
Younis is without a shade of doubt one of the most prolific batsmen that Pakistan has ever produced, having scored over 7,000 runs in both Tests and ODIs in a career that spans 14 years at the moment. He made his comeback into the Pakistani ODI team during the recent tour of Sri Lanka in August. That came for him after months of wait, having last made an international appearance in January earlier in the year against the same opponents.
He was having a great comeback series, scoring a flamboyant 177 in the first Test at Galle. Tragedy however was to follow as he learned of the demise of his nephew, which caused him to leave the series midway and return to Pakistan. Younis, who has dealt with such tragedies throughout his career, could not help but stay away from cricket for a while. The pall of gloom however was not meant to cast a permanent shadow over the fighter that Younis is, who would have been ready to hit the 22-yard pitch once again.
So what really was going through Moin Khan‘s mind when he decided to omit the veteran’s batsman’s name from the One-Day squad is a question that is undoubtedly going through every Pakistani fan’s mind right now. The suddenness of the decision, combined with the absence of any proper logic behind the same only serves to frustate both the player and the fan. To rub salt on the wounds, the board decided to serve a notice to Younis when the veteran batsman lashed out against the board to the media.
Cricket administration, especially in the subcontinent, has always seen a battle of egos affecting the best of people, whether it was the Ganguly-Chappell saga that took the Indian team towards a downslide, or the volatile Pakistani cricketing history which has seen cold wars between legends as well as administrators (Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram’s mutual hostilities). One can see this as chief selector Moin Khan using his position to settle some personal scores with Younis.
All the speculation aside, it does not help the ODI team and Pakistani cricket in general to leave out one of their most faithful stalwarts. Not only does it send a negative message to the team members, especially the youngsters who need figures like him around them for their nurture, it also serves to break the spirit of the athlete whose loyalty towards the sport and his country has been tried and tested.
Khan has recieved the backing of several former players and officials, aside from the outpouring of support towards him on the social media, although it remains to be seen as to how effective these factors are going to be in making the PCB reverse its decision. The board has dished out a similar treatment to many legendary names who were shown the door in a similar manner, including the likes of Javed Miandad and Inzamam-ul-Haq.
One can hope for the support for Younis Khan to comes from the distinguished names in the sport from across the world that will but add pressure on the board. Or for the fact that the board comes up with at least a logical explanation towards its decison. With the current situation however, things look grim and could have its consequences on Pakistan’s World Cup campaign, especially as the men-in-green have their eyes set on winning the cup back where they first won it.
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(Amit Banerjee, a reporter at CricketCountry, takes keen interest in photography, travelling, technology, automobiles, food and, of course, cricket. He can be followed on Twitter via his handle @akb287)
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