Published: May 04, 2020, 07:00 AM (IST)
Edited: May 04, 2020, 10:05 AM (IST)
Former Pakistan fast bowler Rana Naved-ul-Hasan has alleged the senior national cricketers deliberately under-performed during a 2009 New Zealand series in UAE as they were unhappy with the attitude of the then captain Younis Khan.
After winning the series opening first ODI by 138 runs, Pakistan lost the next two matches by 64 runs and seven runs to lose 1-2. And Rana claims those defeats were down to few players ‘conspiring’ to oust Younis as captain.
“We lost two ODI matches against New Zealand in the UAE during 2009 because some of the players involved deliberately did not play well,” Rana was quoted as saying by PTI.
Rana, who played 9 Tests, 74 ODIs and four T20Is between 2004 and 2010, said the seeds of the conspiracy were sown soon after the 2009 Champions Trophy in South Africa when some players felt that Younis was too “arrogant and abusive”.
The senior players during that period were Mohammed Yousuf, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal and Saeed Ajmal.
“I preferred to sit out of the tour. But I had informed Younis Khan that this was a conspiracy against you and that they wanted me to be part of it,” the 42-year-old claimed.
He continued, “After he (Younis) became captain, his personality and attitude changed and some seniors (he didn’t name them), who harboured ambitions of leading the side didn’t want to play under him,” said Rana who took 133 international wickets across formats.
