Wave of support made me stay as captain - Younis

Pakistan captain Younis Khan has said though it had been a difficult time facing up to match-fixing allegations, the wave of support back home that followed after he offered to step down, persuaded him to stay in charge of the team.

"It started with the committee that called me," Younis said. "As for me, it was very hard to go there and answer their questions. If I'm being questioned on my performance or my team's performance then that's very easy, as that happens in every country, not just Pakistan. But it was hard to go there and face them [and answer questions on match-fixing] and it was in my mind that if there were any hard questions then I'd quit.

"I'm used to controversy, but this time the whole nation was behind me. I thought I might not be able to play for a couple of months but every single person in Pakistan was backing me, so that's why I'm here."

There were believed to be various reasons behind Younis's resignation, though he never openly stated them. It is believed that as well as the suspicions of match-fixing raised in the aftermath of Pakistan's Champions Trophy semi-final loss to New Zealand, murmurs about factions in the team and management working to undermine Younis spurred the move.

However, Younis said he was keen to stop, what according to him, was a flawed search for answers everytime the side failed to win. "It's not possible all the time to win competitions," he said. "I wanted to stop these things and that's why I gave my resignation.

"My mind is now free and I can just worry about my captaincy, worry about my own form and worry about my team. I have no problems with my team, no problems with my country and no problems with my countrymen and I hope you'll see that in the coming days."

Pakistan will be engaging New Zealand in a limited-overs series - three ODIs and two Twenty20 internationals - in the UAE, from November 3-13. While the ODIs have been scheduled for Abu Dhabi, Dubai will host the two Twenty20s.

Younis, however, downplayed the notion that the upcoming clash was a chance to avenge the defeat in the Champions Trophy. "It's not [a revenge series] but all the Pakistan players have it in their minds, if possible, to beat New Zealand," Younis said. "In cricket and sport there is no revenge, but we won't forget that loss."

Pak Cricket Team leaves for Dubai

LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Team – lead by Captain Younis Khan – has left for Dubai.

According to sources, National Cricket Team departed from Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore Thursday night.

The National Team will play three One-Days and two Twenty-20 matches against New Zealand.

At this occasion a large number of cricket fans saw-off the national heroes.

Meanwhile, talking to newsmen at Lahore Airport, Coach Intekhab Aalam said the National Team is united.

Vettori relieved to leave attention behind

New Zealand have arrived in Abu Dhabi for the limited-overs series against Pakistan and their captain, Daniel Vettori, is looking forward to the relative peace and quiet of the UAE following a turbulent week at home, which culminated in theresignation of coach Andy Moles.

"If anything it's exciting to get out of New Zealand, get away from the scrutiny for a little bit, and come here and do what we do best," Vettori was quoted as saying by Sportal. "It's difficult from the perspective of having to front it all, I suppose, as captain and a selector as well. It means the focus has been on me for the explanation, so coming here takes a bit of heat off that."

Having taken up the coaching job less than a year ago, Moles resigned after holding mediation talks with New Zealand Cricket (NZC), following reports that senior players were unhappy with the lack of technical and tactical support being provided by him. It was agreed Moles would step down, after a review of the team's performance in Sri Lanka and at the Champions Trophy suggested that changes should be made.

The sudden developments left NZC with no time to appoint a new coach, or even an interim one, but they were confident Vettori's leadership would hold the team in good stead against Pakistan. Partly fulfilling the role of coach is the latest addition to Vettori's roster of responsibilities which includes the duties of captain, selector and key allrounder. Vettori, however, didn't think it would be much of a burden.

"I don't feel like I have to pick up any slack in terms of coaching the side or anything like that, but it's about coming over here and getting the job done," he said. Vettori also has no deputy after NZC relieved Brendon McCullum of the vice-captaincy in order for him to focus on his batting but did not name a replacement. New Zealand, however, still have their assistant coaches, Mark O'Donnell and Shane Jurgensen, and manager Dave Currie, who will have an enhanced role in the team set-up.

The Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam, however, said New Zealand "could find the going tough without a coach". "From where I see it, it is very important for an international cricket team to have a full-time coach," he told the News. "It could be tough for him [Vettori]. I mean, the whole idea of having a coach is to ensure that the captain is spared from any headaches and can focus on leading his players on the field in the best possible manner."

New Zealand and Pakistan clashed in the semi-final of the ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa, a contest that New Zealand won by five wickets. Vettori hoped to build on that success during the upcoming three-ODI and two-Twenty20 international series and wanted his team to display more consistency.

"I think you could say we're mercurial sides," Vettori said. "Inconsistency probably plagues both teams and you look at both teams and say there are some really talented players and guys who can win games but how often are we consistently doing that? We know we're going to battle hard against Pakistan and we need those key players to step up to either win games or nullify Pakistan's key players.

Several of New Zealand's key players, though, are out with injuries or are recovering from injuries but Vettori said there was "a little bit of confidence in the side" despite that and they believed they were "good enough to win".

Jesse Ryder, Daryl Tuffey and Grant Elliott did not travel to the UAE while, among those who did, Kyle Mills has a shoulder niggle and Vettori and Jacob Oram are recovering from hamstring problems. "I think New Zealand teams unfortunately have dealt with that on numerous occasions and they understand how to get up for them," Vettori said. "I think we've shown ourselves to be a resilient side and it creates opportunities and also gives the likes of Scott Styris, who is an extremely experienced guy, to come back into the side and prove his worth.

"If those guys perform, it means we've got a strong squad to pick from. That's been one of our biggest disadvantages that we don't have a big pool of players who consistently compete on the world stage and, when injuries take over, we've struggled. Hopefully there's a little bit of silver lining for us."

Asif ruled out of New Zealand series

Mohammad Asif's return to international cricket will be temporarily derailed as the Pakistan board clarified that he will not be travelling with the team to Abu Dhabi and Dubai for the ODI and Twenty20 series against New Zealand in November.

Asif was deported from the UAE last year, having spent 19 days in detention at Dubai Airport, after he was found to be in possession of a small amount of opium. Though criminal charges were not pressed - reportedly after high-level contacts between the government of Pakistan and the UAE monarchy - the court order called for his immediate deportation and banned him from entering the UAE until further notice.

The PCB had been trying to clarify what the situation was now that Asif is once again available for selection - following completion of a year-long ban for another doping offense last year - but has been told by authorities that he is not allowed back in. "Asif cannot play in the UAE," Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman, said. "We checked with authorities in UAE what his position was and we can confirm that he cannot play there. If he goes there he will be arrested."

The situation leaves Pakistan in a quandary: following terrorist attacks on the Sri Lankan team in March this year, international cricket is unlikely to return to Pakistan till 2011. Till that time, it is likely Pakistan will play a number of 'home' series at neutral venues in the UAE. For the time being, however, they will have to make do without the services of one of their leading fast bowlers.

PCB chairman on a visit to India

Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman, is in India as the guest of BCCI president Shashank Manohar, prompting speculation in the Pakistan media that the visit is aimed at reviving cricket ties between the two countries. While his agenda has not been made public, it is understood that he will attend Monday's ODI between India and Australia in Mohali.

India had cancelled their tour of Pakistan scheduled for January 2009 because of strained relations between the two governments after it emerged that Pakistan-based militants were responsible for the terror attacks in Mumbai last November.

"I am going to India, but at this point of time I am not going to make any comment and once things mature only then will I be able to speak," Butt said. "Not only Pakistan and India but the ICC is also making efforts to revive bilateral ties between the two countries as it is imperative that we play against each other in the FTP and we will discuss the option of neutral venues."

However, Indian board sources said there would be no talks and it was a routine invitation. Also, they said there was no scope for any matches against Pakistan in this FTP. Some games have been included in the next FTP but are subject to government clearance.

Sri Lanka had agreed to tour Pakistan, after India had cancelled their trip, but their cricketers were the target of another terrorist attack in Lahore in March. Following that attack, the ICC shifted the Champions Trophy to South Africa and stripped Pakistan of its share of 2011 World Cup matches.

Afridi joins South Australia for Twenty20

South Australia have signed Shahid Afridi for the Twenty20 Big Bash this summer as a replacement for the spinner Ajantha Mendis. The Redbacks had announced the recruitment of Mendis in July but he is now unavailable due to Sri Lanka's planned tri-serieswith India and Bangladesh in January.

"It is a big opportunity and will help me gear up for next year's one-day internationals against Australia and then in the World Twenty20 where we have to defend our title," Afridi told AFP. "I have heard that West Indian Kieron Pollard will also play in the Twenty20 tournament in Australia, so it will be very exciting and I hope that I am able to entertain the Australian crowd."

South Australia's Big Bash campaign begins on December 29, when Pakistan will be involved in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne. However, Afridi has not played Test cricket since 2006 and is not expected to feature in their Test squad, which would leave him free to take part in the majority of the Twenty20 competition. "For the time being I want to concentrate on one-dayers and Twenty20 internationals to improve myself so that we can defend our World Twenty20 title successfully," Afridi said. "He's a very dynamic hitter," Jamie Cox, South Australia's high performance manager said. "It's probably more his bowling that we're really keen on. He's become a fantastic legspin bowler over the past four or five years, he's really matured as a bowler. That's probably the greatest opportunity for us with three home games particularly, to replace a very good world spinner with another one."

Afridi should be a valuable Twenty20 asset for South Australia; he was the player of the tournament at the 2007 ICC World Twenty20 and averages 21.05 with the bat and 15.73 with the ball from his 24 Twenty20 internationals. Other international signings for the Big Bash include Chris Gayle (Western Australia) and Dwayne Bravo (Victoria).

Lasith Malinga was to join Tasmania and Victoria had attracted Muttiah Muralitharan but both men are likely to be unavailable for the same reason as Mendis. The West Indies allrounder Kieron Pollard is on New South Wales' radar and the states have until Christmas Eve to confirm up to two international recruits.

Younis vows to take more responsibility

Having taken back his resignation from the captaincy,Younis Khan has said he is ready to take on more responsibility for Pakistan. Younis had earlier said he was overwhelmed with the support he had received in the week after he handed in his papers at a National Assembly committee hearing in Islamabad, and promised to reward his backers' faith in him.

"It [his resignation and subsequent agreement to continue to be at the helm] has put more responsibility on me," he said in his first public appearance since resuming the captaincy. "And if I used to play 100%, now I have to play 200%. I have played eight, nine years now ... but yes, this time around the support from the public, media and former players has put more responsibility on me and I am ready to take it."

Younis resigned as captain earlier this month following match-fixing accusations during the ICC Champions Trophy semi-final against New Zealand. PCB chairman Ijaz Butt, though, refused to accept the decision.

After a lull in international assignments over the last two years, Pakistan suddenly find themselves embarking on a schedule that will keep them in action until February next year. They first play three ODIs in Abu Dhabi starting November 3, followed by two Twenty20s in Dubai before heading off to New Zealand for a three-Test series. "New Zealand is like Sri Lanka and Australia as they also play as a unit, so when we play such a team we have to play as a unit to beat them," said Younis. "I hope that it will be a good series."

Pakistan's ODI vice-captain Shahid Afridi, who recently quashed rumours about an ongoing rift with Younis, said: "We need to win the one-day series first, so that we have more confidence in the Twenty20 series . We need to iron out any differences in the team which usually surfaced because of lack of communication. If someone has any complaints he must come forward."

Following the Tests in New Zealand, Pakistan move to Australia where they have another three-Test series and a series of five ODIs as well as a Twenty20.

Pakistan Squad For NZ Tour!

Tests: Salman Butt, Khurrum Manzoor, Imran Farhat, Younis Khan (capt), Mohammad Yousuf, Shoaib Malik, Fawad Alam, Faisal Iqbal, Kamran Akmal (wk), Danish Kaneria, Saeed Ajmal, Yasir Arafat, Umar Gul, Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Aamer, Abdur Rauf, Umar Akmal, Sarfraz Ahmad

One-dayers: Salman Butt, Imran Farhat, Khalid Latif, Younis Khan (capt), Mohammad Yousuf, Shoaib Malik, Umar Akmal, Kamran Akmal (wk), Abdul Razzaq, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamer, Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Wahab Riaz

Twenty20: Khalid Latif, Imran Nazir, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi (capt), Kamran Akmal (wk), Abdul Razzaq, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamer, Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Saeed Ajmal, Imran Farhat, Fawad Alam, Sohail Tanvir

Misbah axed from all three formats

Misbah-ul-Haq's international revival seems to have come to an end, after he was left out from the squads in all three formats for Pakistan's upcoming series of ODIs, T20Is and Tests against New Zealand in the Middle East and New Zealand. Pakistan's selection committee have seemingly covered as many bases as possible in the three formats, recalling several forgotten names and forming an unusually large 18-man Test squad.

Misbah's form has been poor in all three formats over the last year, in contrast to 2007, when he reignited his dormant international career in sensational fashion at the World Twenty20 in South Africa and then on a tour to India. The emergence of Umar Akmal as a middle order prospect has, for now at least, brought Misbah's second innings to a close.

However, chief selector Iqbal Qasim hoped Misbah would regain form before the tour to Australia later this year. "He has been given rest because we think he is under pressure and needs time to regroup himself," Qasim said.

The other major theme to the squads is the return of opener Imran Farhat, who ends a two-year exile after his stint in the Indian Cricket League by being picked in all three squads. Pakistan's last few squads have lacked specialist openers; at the Champions Trophy, only Imran Nazir was a specialist in the position.

Alongside Farhat returns another left-handed opener, Salman Butt; he was dropped after a poor series in Sri Lanka this summer but is back in both the Test and ODI squads. According to the selectors, the left-hander was brought back to avoid reliance on makeshift openers. "Opening is a specialized field and we want to hand over this job to regular openers," Qasim said.

Nazir is retained in the Twenty20 squad. Khalid Latif, in imperious domestic form, has also been recalled to Pakistan's ODI and Twenty20 squads, offering another opening option.

There will be disappointment at the non-selection of fresh faces performing well in domestic cricket, particularly batsmen, but the selectors have recalled left-arm pacemen Sohail Tanvir and Wahab Riaz. The pair make up for the absence of Mohammad Asif from the first limited-overs leg of the tour; because of his deportation last year from Dubai, Asif is unable to travel back and so has been picked only for the Test squad.

Seven players - the Akmal brothers, Saeed Ajmal, Farhat, Shoaib Malik, Umar Gul and Mohammad Aamer - find a place in all three squads. Younis Khan, after resigning and coming back in the last week as captain, will lead the Test and ODI side, and Shahid Afridi remains the Twenty20 captain.

After a lull in international assignments over the last two years, Pakistan suddenly find themselves embarking on a schedule that will keep them in action until February next year. They first play three one-dayers in Abu Dhabi starting November 3, followed by two Twenty20s in Dubai before heading off to New Zealand for a three-Test series. Following that, they move to Australia where they have another three-Test series and a series of five ODIs as well as a T20I. The large squads, in part, reflects the heavy schedule.

hard Luck Pakistan ** Better Luck Next Time **

Good Luck PAKISTAN for NZ & Aus Tour!

Good Luck PAKISTAN

We wish a very best of luck for Pakistan for their Semi Finals vs New Zealand.

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03-10-2009