Selectors recall Younus Khan to Pakistan ODI squad

Lahore: Pakistan Cricket Board selectors, headed by Haroon Rashid, Thursday included senior batsman Younus Khan in a 16 man Pakistan squad named for the one-day series against England starting later this month in the United Arab Emirates. It is pertinent to mention that Younus has been recalled (due to pressure from the national media) against the wishes of the team management who have serious reservations over his current form. 37 years old batsman was discarded from the one day team after a poor tour of New Zealand and 2015 World Cup in April, where he managed just 77 runs in six matches. The squad has also uncapped 20-year-old Zafar Gohar who bowls left-arm spin and bats in the lower order, replacing Imad Wasim who is ruled out of the one-day matches with injury. Besides these changes, the selectors have opted for the same squad that won the Zimbabwe ODI series 2-1 in Zimbabwe last month. Azhar Ali will lead the team.

Chief selector Haroon said Pakistan would need Younus’ batting experience during the four-match ODI series. “Obviously his current Test form is good and we need a senior batsman to stabilise our middle order batting,” Haroon added. Defending selecting Younus, Haroon maintained it was not a backward move because a few tough series were coming up. “Now it is up to Younus to prove that he could meet the demands of the modern-day one-day cricket and play according to the team management’s game plan.”

Younus has had a see-saw one-day career of 264 matches, having scored only two hundreds in the last seven years, a record that has lead head coach Waqar Younis and support staff to reportedly resisted selecting him. But he has forced his way back into the team by scoring prolifically in Test matches and also maintaining a high fitness level at the age of 37. In Test cricket, Younus scored eight hundreds from his last 15 matches at an average of 68.68. However, his recent record in ODIs has been less impressive; he has managed just one century since 2008, against New Zealand last December. Being dropped from the ODI squad, a hurt Younus had lashed out at the PCB many a time, challenging the team to build a team without him in the mix. More