Younis Khan stays as captain

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Uncertainty and unpredictability go hand in hand with Pakistan cricket. Nothing could be taken for granted in this part of the world. A captain can still be removed from office even after having performed beyond expectations and people can still get away with it after having taken the laws in their hands.

There were indications that the head of Younis Khan was to be put on the chopping block after Pakistan returned from South Africa, having made it to the semifinals of the ICC Champions Trophy against all odds.

The conspirators became proactive and the impression was being given that Younis had become a spent force and he needed to be replaced by someone as enterprising as Shahid Khan Afridi.

Even a few of the members of the Governing Body of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) were openly lobbying for Shahid and they were not afraid to publicly criticize Younis for his performance or the lack of it in the just concluded Champions Trophy.

With the PCB members seeking his blood, Younis must have been under enormous pressure when he confronted the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Sports in Islamabad.

In fact he had arrived there ready in all respects. He had done his homework in the interim period. He appeared mentally prepared to face the criticism from the Standing Committee after the provocative statements prior to the hearing.

He might have been pleasantly surprised to be cleared of any wrongdoing after all that drama that surrounded the hearing but he still decided to submit his resignation to the PCB Chairman, Ijaz Butt, who was also present on the occasion.

It could have been a pre-planned move because this allowed Younis to hog the limelight once more and silence the guns that were being targeted at him. All of a sudden he became so innocent and the PCB Chairman acted according to the plot.

Soon afterwards Younis had a one-to-one meeting with the PCB Chairman in which he is reported to have demanded more authority and a long-term tenure in lieu of taking back his resignation.

The PCB bosses don’t have an option right now. They can’t be expected to pass on the Test captaincy to Shahid Afridi who might struggle to make the playing eleven all the time. Some quarters have pleaded for the reinstatement of Shoaib Malik but that would have been too early at this stage.

With so much of cricket to be played by Pakistan during the next 12 months there hardly is any need for the change of guard in any case. Sacking Younis only because Pakistan lost to New Zealand in the semifinals of the ICC Championships would have been ridiculous.

All seems well now with Younis having taken back his resignation. He is ready to lead the national team once more with the PCB lending him the much needed support. He has been confirmed as the Pakistan captain till the 2011 World Cup, subject to fitness.

"I am very happy right now. The faith that the chairman and the board has placed in me again, it's good to know. The support that I have received from the board and the country through this time has been fantastic," the Pakistan skipper acknowledged.

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Pakistanis can’t swallow defeat at New Zealand’s hands

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Yes that’s the root cause of all problems. Pakistan had been playing around with the New Zealanders so often during the past couple of decades in particular that nobody is now prepared to accept the fact that it’s cricket after all.

The Black Caps have had this tendency of crashing against Pakistan after performed exceedingly well against tougher oppositions. Their worst performances of the recent times have mostly come against Pakistan leading the people to believe that there was only one result possible when these two teams are pitted against each other.

It’s after nine years or so when New Zealand have managed to pull off a victory over Pakistan in an ICC tournament. It was way back in 2000 when the Black Caps had knocked over Pakistan in the semifinals of the Champions Trophy that was again considered an upset and there was suspicion of ‘hidden hands’ behind the unexpected result.

History has repeated itself as Pakistan have again lost to New Zealand in the semifinals of the ICC Champions Trophy. Everybody, in Pakistan at least, appeared to have taken it for granted that only one team was to win the day.

There was hardly anything during the course of the game to suggest Pakistan players engaged in any wrongdoing. It was just another cricket match between two evenly matched sides.

As a matter of fact New Zealand had emerged as the Group B champions and Pakistan had actually finished runners-up in the Group A after having narrowly lost to Australia in their last league outing.

New Zealand were on a high and their bowling attack was as potent as possessed by any other side having entered the competition. They had overpowered teams like Sri Lanka and England after having gone down fighting against hosts South Africa.

So New Zealand were neither Ireland nor Zimbabwe, having got there by a stroke of luck. But yes their nerves were to be tested to the maximum in the semifinals because they were up against a side that had been shattering their dreams consistently over the years.

I don’t know how the so-called experts of the game anticipated New Zealand to succumb without offering any resistance to the Pakistan’s spin duo of Saeed Ajmal and Shahid Afridi after they had successfully negotiated Ajantha Mendis and Mutiah Muralitharan earlier in the competition.

If people expected Umar Gul to take another five-for just as he had done against them in the ICC Twenty20 a few months ago, I am afraid, they were expected far too much from the lion-hearted fast bowler who obviously cannot bring about a miracle every other day.

So more than anything it’s all about mindset. People in Pakistan had assumed even before the first ball was delivered in the semifinals that Younis Khan’s men were through to the final already.

In such circumstances it’s not easy to swallow the pains of defeat. Nobody is prepared to talk about the positives. How Pakistan reached the semifinals against the heaviest of odds is not mentioned anywhere. The only thing people are interested in talking about is how Pakistan lost to New Zealand. Nearly everyone seems convinced in Pakistan that New Zealand were the soft target and they could have been hammered.

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Younis Khan resigns once more

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Resignation is nothing new to Younis Khan who has had this habit of treating the national captaincy as yet another assignment. Although he has been around in international cricket for nearly a decade now, he's yet to learn the basics of conducting oneself after having reached the status of a celebrity.

His latest resignation came on October 13 even after being cleared by a parliamentary sports committee on charges of match-fixing in the ICC Champions Trophy. He told the committee that he was upset over the charges and he was not prepared to continue leading the national cricket team.

Younis has been found vulnerable whenever coping with the pressure. He has become so predictable with his acts. He is just not able to put his acts together when he is confronted with a situation that demands one to be sensible and smart.

He talks big but he has been found wanting more often than not when it comes to delivering. He succumbs to the pressure far too easily and his opponents know it very well how to test him.

Be it the members of the National Assembly or the media corps, Younis probably treats everyone as his enemy who doesn't subscribe to his theories. He has repeatedly passed the impression of losing his temper far too quickly and thus committing mistakes that could easily have been avoided.

Younis possibly thought that his job was done when he handed his resignation letter to Ijaz Butt, the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), who was also present in the hearing.

Not for the first time Younis ran away as quickly as he could, not even caring to explain to the waiting media if he was bidding farewell to the game for good. "I have resigned as a captain. I won't say a word more." That was all he said.

The PCB Chairman said he was stunned by the decision. "I had absolutely no idea that he had the resignation letter in his jacket and I was surprised when he produced it," Ijaz Butt was quoted as saying.

But the stories are doing the rounds that some elements in the PCB are conspiring against Younis and they desire Shahid Afridi to take up the national captaincy for the upcoming series against New Zealand.

"Younis Khan was mystified as to why vice-captain Shahid Afridi was called up to discuss the New Zealand and Australia series when the captain himself was available in the country and recovering from what was only a hairline fracture. He could not understand the reason for being left out of the loop for two very important tours," one of the unnamed PCB officials confided to a leading national daily.

Younis has been under fire even after his team had made it to the Champions Trophy against all odds. Even some members of the PCB have openly criticized his leadership qualities and they are believed to be lobbying for his ouster.

The PCB Chairman has refrained from accepting the resignation of Younis promptly but that doesn't necessarily mean that he's not a part of the conspiracy hatched against the short-tempered skipper.

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Mind sports Collegiate Programme launched at Institute of Business Management

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The top officials of the Mind Sports Association of Pakistan (MSAP) have expressed satisfaction at the successful launch of their Collegiate Programme at the Institute of Business Management (IoBM) in Korangi Creek, Karachi.

Tariq Rasheed Khan, Director, MSAP, who is also handling the Collegiate Programme, reckoned that the successful launch at the IoBM has opened the floodgates and quite a few other prestigious educational institutions have expressed the desire to adopt mind sports in the same way.

“The two-day activity at the IoBM was a dream come true occasion for the hosts as well as the organizers. It was very heartening to such an enthusiastic response that augurs very well for the future of mind sports in Pakistan. Among the students who enrolled themselves in the launch at the IoBM, as many as 50% participated in chess, 30% in scrabble and 20% in bridge,” he revealed.

The Students Activity Centre of the IoBM was flooded with the enthusiastic youngsters who were eager to be a part of history being made at the campus. It was for the first time when the college students were provided with a customized setup for the mind games.

In the welcome address in the inauguration ceremony Tariq Rasheed acknowledged the support of the various stakeholders who made the takeoff possible against the heaviest of odds.

“It’s always tough when you go about reinventing the wheel. We knew about the challenges when we embarked upon the mission of taking the mind sports to the educational institutions,” he observed.

“Since it was a new concept we needed to do presentations and convince the institutions about the virtues of the programme. It’s very heartening to note that the management of the IoBM, based on the feedback from the faculty and the students, took the lead and we are launching the programme now,” Tariq Rasheed added.

“It would not have been possible to do it without the support of the concerned quarters. We are grateful to our sponsors and the media for having lent us the desired encouragement. Our Board of Directors at the MSAP deserves compliments for having kept the ball rolling,” he said.

The Chairman of the MSAP, Kemal Shoaib, spoke about the aims and objects of the body that was formed under the leadership of Khurshid Hadi last year.

He praised the management of the IoBM for having adopted the MSAP Collegiate Programme at their institution and hoped that this would help their students in further sharpening their skills.

Dr Faisal Farooqui, speaking on behalf of the IoBM, expressed his gratitude to the MSAP for having launched the programme, which he thought, would be hugely beneficial for their students.

“It’s quite an amazing effort on part of the MSAP to have integrated the games of bridge, chess and scrabble. All these games are extremely popular among the students and they would gain immensely by playing them in an organized manner. We are confident that our students will make the most of this opportunity and enhance their capabilities in the mind sports,” he noted.

Azwer-ur-Haq, President, Karachi Bridge Association (KBA), Shahzad Mirza, International Master and Secretary, Chess Players Association of Pakistan (CPAP), Shah Nawaz Khan, an ex-Secretary General, Chess Federation of Pakistan (CFP) and Abdul Wahid Bhalia of the Pakistan Scrabble Association (PSA) were also in attendance at the launch alongwith the MSAP officials, Kemal Shoaib, Tariq Rasheed Khan and Pervez Iqbal.

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Sehwag means business

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The incomparable Virender Sehwag has shown once more that his batting talents are second to none. He has had a layoff from international cricket for reasons beyond his injury but his critics should know that he has lost none of his skills that make him the most feared batsman in the world. He has probably become wiser now as far as shot selection is concerned.

Sehwag was close to his best while playing for Delhi Daredevils against Wayamba at his home ground, Feroz Shah Kotla, in the Champions League Twenty20 Tournament 2009 on October 11.

Delhi desperately needed to overpower Wayamba in order to stay afloat in the competition after having lost their opening game to Victoria a couple of nights ago. The pitch wasn’t conducive to free flowing strokes yet Sehwag was the man they looked forward to in the crunch game.

Gautum Gambhir won the toss for the second game running and he had to make sure that the advantage was capitalized unlike the previous match when Delhi couldn’t even post one hundred while batting first.

The state of the pitch was very much in the minds of the batsmen and it was truly reflected when the flamboyant Sri Lankan opener, Tillakaratne Dilshan, played out the first over without troubling the scorers. It was a rare sight watching a maiden over being bowled and that too inside the powerplay session. Chanaka Welegedara deserved the credit for having kept Dilshan quiet.

Sehwag, who opened the innings with Dilshan, didn’t take long to open his shoulders and once he was underway the pitch looked full of runs rather incredibly. That’s the magic of Sehwag. He can remain untroubled on the most difficult of strips for two reasons. He has complete faith in his eyesight and secondly the bowlers also don’t have the heart to attack him with the same intensity and purpose as they do with other batsmen.

Dilshan kept struggling in his 16-ball 10 while Gambhir was also short of confidence on pitch whose bounce could not be trusted. But Sehwag kept hitting boundaries and the run-rate didn’t dip.

The enigmatic Dinesh Karthik did his job of feeding Sehwag with the strike and their partnership took the match away from Jehan Mubarak’s side. The ease with which Sehwag caressed the ball to the various corners of the ground was a treat to watch.

A century for Sehwag was there for the taking but as it has happened many times in the past the entertainment for the crowd was cut short against the run of play. Karthik pushed one towards the point region and took off for the quick single. Sehwag responded but he was beaten by the flat throw from Mahela Jayawardene.

Sehwag was run out after scoring 62 off 42 balls with the help of a six and 10 fours. The score was already 112 when he departed in the 15th over. Karthik made up with three consecutive sixes off Ajantha Mendis and the Delhi total reached 170 in the allotted 20 overs.

Glenn McGrath, the Australian fast bowling great, appeared to have derived the inspiration from his teammate Sehwag as was right on the money while returning to the bowling crease after 18 months. Delhi were never in danger of losing the game after the blitz from Sehwag and they lived upto the billing by winning it by 50 runs.

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Shahid Afridi likely to be handed over captaincy sooner than later

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

If the recent statements by some of the Board officials serve as any indication then Younis Khan’s days in office appear to be numbered with the ‘establishment’ putting its entire weight before Shahid Afridi.

The manner in which Younis is being condemned with Shahid being promoted as a more proactive cricketer there’s ample evidence to suggest that a change is in the offing and it seems a matter of time for the decision to be announced.

Unfortunately the affairs of the cricket board in Pakistan have been run unprofessionally more often than not over the years and now it could be the turn of Younis to face the music.

Isn’t it funny to note that Younis has sought audience with the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Ijaz Butt, in which he would discuss his fitness and availability for the one-dayers against New Zealand in Dubai in November?

Did the Pakistan captain need to approach the top official of the PCB just to let him know about his fitness? There is a whole army of managers to general managers in the PCB who are being obliged with salaries and perks worth millions of Rupees every month. Isn’t anyone of them capable enough to look into this matter?

What about Wasim Bari, the Chief Operating Officer of the PCB? Doesn’t his job description include keeping track of things as important as the fitness of the captain of the national team?

The whole world knows that Younis had fractured a finger on the eve of the ICC Champions Trophy last month. He had missed the opening game against the West Indies which Pakistan won under the captaincy of Shahid Afridi.

There are conflicting reports why Younis returned to side without regaining fitness. One school of thought believes had he had to fast track his return because he felt threatened to lose his job if the team continued its winning streak under the caretaker captain.

Younis is also reported to have prevailed over the team management who were not very keen to let him play before fully recovering from the fracture. On the positive side, he didn’t desire the team to suffer on the account of inexperience as his ouster would have definitely created a big hole in batting.

The decision of Younis to continue playing despite carrying the injury brought mixed results. He didn’t get many runs against India but his brilliant direct hit to run out Gautam Gambhir turned the tide decisively in Pakistan’s favour. The way the left-handed Gambhir was flaying the bowling only a freak dismissal could have brought about his demise and so did it happen.

Younis did fairly well in the last league fixture against Australia, the eventual champions. All the pressure was on the Australians and the Pakistan captain had every reason to smile throughout the game that produced a close result rather unexpectedly.

The New Zealanders, after a very long time, managed to put their acts together against Pakistan and there was not much Younis could have done. He did drop a sitter but that’s very much a part and parcel of the game and doesn’t merit suspicion or clarification.

If the movers and shakers of the PCB have already decided to bring in Shahid in place of Younis then the latter might be, for the purpose of face-saving, may be advised to declare himself unavailable for the upcoming ODI series against New Zealand.

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Younis Khan’s head could be on chopping block for wrong reasons

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Intrigues and mismanagement have been part and parcel of Pakistan cricket for a number of years. In the absence of seasoned and committed administrators the affairs of the controlling body of the game have mostly remained in the hands of people with vested interests.

It’s not uncommon in Pakistan cricket to go unpunished after committing blunders and misdeeds. There are also examples of the cricketers having made scaegoats and penalized for the faults of others. The captaincy of the national team has never been a bed of roses and more often than not there have been uncalled for controversies.

I fail to comprehend how Pakistan’s performance in the recently concluded ICC Champions Trophy 2009 in South Africa could be considered a debacle or even below par.

The defeat against New Zealand in the semifinals has been blown out of proportions and an impression is being passed by certain quarters that there was some foul play in it.

I don’t know how those learned members of the Governing Body of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), who are now crticial of the performance of Younis Khan in particular, had taken for granted that Pakistan would be returning home with the trophy in their baggage when the team was actually not even expected to enter the semifinals.

Australia and India were rated among the favourites for the title but these teams were placed in Pakistan’s group. It was nothing short of a miracle that Pakistan forced their way into the knockout stage of the competition against the heaviest of odds.

Pakistan never had an impressive record on the soil of South Africa where the ball seamed and bounced much more to their liking. Yet Pakistan defied all odds to cruise into the semifinals. Beyond that it was always going to be a bonus.

Similarly neither New Zealand nor England were expected to progress beyond the first round in the presence of the likes of South Africa and Sri Lanka in their group. England succumbed to Australia in the semifinals and the New Zealand crashed in the final against the same opponents. There was no hue and cry in any part of the world because that’s how life goes.

When England and New Zealand can feel relaxed after having performed beyond expectations why has Pakistan been denied this luxury? I think the movers and shakers of the game in the country should rise above petty interests and they should rather mobilize their energies in doing things that could lead to the resumption of international cricket in Pakistan.

This is not the right time to displace Younis Khan. Why should he be removed from captaincy when the team has actually come up with much better performance than anticipated. All his moves should not be taken negatively.

He is after all a human being and cricket is a team sport. He can’t be the only reason of the defeat at the hands of New Zealand in the semifinals. He should be given time to recover from injury.

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Australia’s young guns do the business

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

In the end it was in the fitness of things that the best team having entered the knockout stage of the competition went on claim the trophy. Yes the Australians were the worthy winners of the title after having proved themselves the strongest of all participating outfits. Ricky Ponting deserved to be crowned again after yet another spectacular performance.

This title win should rank higher and feel sweeeter for the Aussies who managed to do it with a relatively young and inexperienced outfit. They were a much more formidable side when they had clinched the Champions Trophy in India for the first time in 2006 and there was hardly any element of surprise in Ponting having run away with the glittering cup.

Things were different in 2009 when Ponting returned to defend the title. Although they had demolished England 6-1 in the ODI series on the eve of the Champions Trophy they were expected to face tougher challenges with South Africa and India rated as the firm favourites due to a combination of factors.

Obviously nobody was foolish enough to write the Australians off but there certainly were not many people giving them as much of a chance as they had in the past when Ponting used to have the services of master blasters like Adam Gilchrist and Mathew Hayden and champion bowlers like Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath.

It was an opportunity for the Australian youngsters to come good on the international stage and they rose to the occasion under the able leadership of Ponting whose purple patch with the bat made the difference.

It’s nice of Ponting to have recognized the outstanding performance of the youngsters in helping Australia retain the Champions Trophy with hints of conviction.

"We have gone through some ups and downs in the last 18 months. A number of great players have left and we brought in a lot of young, fresh players. It was great to see some of them stand up and deliver," Ponting was quoted as saying after Australia completed a six-wicket win over New Zealand in the final in Centurion on October 5.

The Australian youngsters did not show signs of nerves and were not overawed by the occasion when New Zealand tried to make a comeback in the game. Fast bowler Peter Siddle and off-spinner Nathan Hauritz bowled exceptionally well at a stage when the New Zealanders were attempting to cut loose.

The Black Caps had opened up the game even while defending a modest total of 200 when they got the prized scalp of Ponting to reduce Australia to 6 for two. It was the 128-run third wicket partnership between Shane Watson and Cameron White that allowed Australia to regain control. "Two young guys at the crease at 6 for 2, it doesn't get any tougher and they did a great job," Ponting acknowledged.

"In the ODI series in England after the Ashes, we did well there to put ourselves in a position where we can give this tournament a little bit of a shake. We've played some great cricket over the last couple of weeks here," the victorious captain noted.

Ponting led from the front and his own batting form was instrumental in motivating his youthful side. His aggregate of 288 was the highest in the tournament earning him a golden. He was also declared Man-of-the-Series award, ahead of Watson, who scored unbeaten centuries in semifinal and final.

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