Younis Khan

Younis Khan

یونس خان
Personal information
Full name Mohammad Younis Khan
Born 29 November 1977
Mardan, NWFP (now Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa), Pakistan
Nickname Mike
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Batting style Right-handed
Bowling style Right-arm medium, Legbreak
Role Batsman
International information
National side
  • Pakistan
Test debut (cap 159) 26 February 1999 v Sri Lanka
Last Test 29 Oct-3 Nov 2014 v Australia
ODI debut (cap 131) 13 February 2000 v Sri Lanka
Last ODI 7 March 2015 v South Africa
ODI shirt no. 75
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1998–2005 Peshawar
1999– Habib Bank Limited
2005 Nottinghamshire
2006 Peshawar Panthers
2007 Yorkshire (squad no. 75)
2008 Rajasthan Royals
2008/09– South Australia
2010 Surrey
2005/7 – present Abbottabad Falcons
Career statistics
Competition Test ODI FC LA
Matches 93 258 187 323
Runs scored 8078 7,165 13,657 9,282
Batting average 53.49 31.88 49.48 33.87
100s/50s 28/28 7/48 43/54 11/61
Top score 313 144 313 144
Balls bowled 804 272 3,502 1,133
Wickets 9 3 44 28
Bowling average 54.55 90.33 49.70 38.64
5 wickets in innings 0 0 0 0
10 wickets in match 0 n/a 0 n/a
Best bowling 2/23 1/3 4/52 3/5
Catches/stumpings 103/– 131/– 189/– 177/–
Source: ESPN Cricinfo, 21 January 2014
Pride of Performance Award Recipient
Date 2010
Country Islamic Republic of Pakistan
Presented by Islamic Republic of Pakistan

Mohammad Younis Khan (Pashto, Urdu: محمد یونس خان) (born 29 November 1977, Steel Town Karachi) is a Pakistani cricketer and former captain of the Pakistan national cricket team. Younis' name is often spelled Younis Khan, but he has been quoted as saying that he prefers the spelling "Younus".[1] He is only the third Pakistani player to score 300 or more runs in an innings.[2] Like Imran Khan, he is most remembered for his leadership letting Pakistan win 2009 ICC World Twenty20. He also holds the most centuries by a Pakistani cricketer in test cricket.

On 10 March 2010, Younis, along with another player, Mohammad Yousuf were axed by the Pakistan Cricket Board from playing for Pakistan in any format for an indefinite period, following an inquiry report which suggested that both players were involved in breaches of discipline by inciting divisions within the team.[3] The ban was lifted three months later.[4] Presently Younis is a key member in the ODI and Test match side. By 22 October 2014, Younis reached his 25th test match century against Australia and made his 26th century in the 2nd innings of the same test match, the highest number of centuries of a Pakistani Batsman and the only sixth Pakistani batsman to hit centuries in both innings of same test match.[5]

Career

International career

Younis Khan made his international debut in an ODI against Sri Lanka at Karachi in February 2000, and has since played over 150 ODIs for Pakistan. He has also played in over 90 Test matches. Younis was one of the few batsmen who retained his place in the team after Pakistan's disastrous World Cup campaign in 2003, but lost it soon after due to a string of poor scores in the home series against Bangladesh and South Africa. He came back for the one-day series against India, but failed to cement a place in the Test side.

It was his return to the side in October 2004, at the pivotal one-down, against Sri Lanka in Karachi that laid the groundwork for his emergence as a force in Pakistan cricket. Younis was the top run-getter in the disastrous 3–0 whitewash in Australia immediately after and on the tour of India, for which he was elevated to vice-captain. After a horror start to the series, he came back strongly, capping things off with 267 in the final Test. It was his highest Test score that came off 504 balls in the first innings, to set up a series levelling victory in Bangalore.

Apart from being an accomplished batsman, Younis is also a skilled slip fielder and a very occasional leg-spin bowler. Once, Craig McMillan hit Younis for 26 runs, 4 4 4 4 6 4 in an over, a then world record, during 3rd Test at Westpac Trust Park, Hamilton.[6] He has performed particularly well on foreign grounds, including on tours of Australia, India, England and Sri Lanka. In the six Tests he has played against India, Younis averages an exceptional 106, the highest average against India by a Pakistani cricketer.[7] Apart from his 267 at Bangalore, Younis also made 147 at Kolkata in 2005 and a pair of centuries during India's trip to Pakistan in 2006. More importantly, the tour to India also showcased his potential as a future captain of Pakistan and his energetic and astute leadership has impressed many people. Also in 2006, Younis made a century in the third Test against England at Headingley. On 22 January 2007, he scored a matchwinning 67 not out in the 4th innings to guide Pakistan to victory over South Africa in Port Elizabeth. The five wicket win levelled the series at 1–1.

In 2005, he was one of the 15 nominees for the ICC Test Player of the Year. He is the second fastest Pakistani in terms of innings to reach 4000 Test runs, behind Javed Miandad. Younis reached the milestone in 87 innings, just one more than Sachin Tendulkar took.[8]

Younis Khan topped the ICC's Test Batting Rankings in February 2009 after an acclaimed innings of 313 in his first test as captain, in the process of helping save the match for Pakistan.[9] His ranking score of 880 is the third highest achieved by a Pakistani batsmen after Mohammad Yousuf (933), Javed Miandad (885) and just ahead of Inzamam-ul-Haq (870).[10]

Captaincy situation

He first led Pakistan against the West Indies in 2005. In September 2006, he was offered the position of captain for the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy, following the suspension of Inzamam ul Haq. He turned down the offer, stating he did not want to be a "dummy captain".[11] However, on the morning of 7 October 2006, the Pakistan Cricket Board announced that Khan would lead his team in the tournament.[12] Following the resignation of Inzamam after the Pakistan's exit from the 2007 Cricket World Cup, Khan was offered the captaincy on a permanent basis, but he turned it down. He blamed the angry reaction by the Pakistani public to the team's early exit from the tournament.[13]

After Pakistan's 2–1 defeat to Sri Lanka in 2009, PCB chairman Ijaz Butt appointed Younis Khan as the permanent captain of both the Test and ODI teams. The appointment became effective as of 27 January 2009.[14] Shortly after accepting the post, Younis was quoted as saying, "I will try and fix things that aren't right at the moment... I want our team to be consistent above all, in everything we do and that will require everyone to put their hands up."[15] Younis went on to say that he expects full support from former captain Shoaib Malik whom he called a senior player in the side.

Resignation from captaincy

Khan resigned as captain on 13 October 2009 due to a parliamentary investigation into match fixing that was alleged to have taken place during his reign. Despite being cleared in the investigation, Khan said "Yes I have submitted my resignation because I am disgusted by these match-fixing allegations made against me and the team."[16]

Khan also dropped a catch of Grant Elliott in the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy semi-final. He had a hair-line fracture in his finger prior to the match. Later PCB Chairman requested Khan to take back his resignation and Khan did it under his conditions. However after captaining the team for a three-match series against New Zealand Younis took a break for test matches in New Zealand and the series in Australia the captaincy was given to Mohammad Yousuf and since then Younis has not captained the national team.

Post-captaincy: sacking, troubles and return (2010)

Younis's career after he gave up the captaincy continued on a downwards spiral as he was banned on 10 March 2010. Pakistan Cricket Board announced that Younis Khan had been banned indefinitely for "infighting which brought down the whole team during the tour of Australia in January".[17] His ban was however overturned three months later in June 2010.[4] Despite being cleared of any wrongdoing, Younis was not selected for the series against England.[18] Pakistan continued to suffer frequent batting collapses against England in Test cricket. This put the Pakistan Cricket Board under pressure to restore Younis to the game. Around the same time, Pakistani batsman and Test Captain Salman Butt was suspended on charges of being involved in spot-fixing. This resulted in several former captains including Moin Khan and Zaheer Abbas wanting Younis reinstated to the test team as captain.[19] However the Pakistan Cricket Board did not clear Younis Khan for selection on the tours of South Africa in 2010. Despite being the first-choice for captaincy, the selecting panel Mohsin Khan announced that Misbah-ul-Haq was recalled and made captain.[20] Signs of an improvement in the relationship of the Pakistan Cricket Board and Younis Khan began to emerge after the board contacted Younis to potentially be selected for the tour Against South Africa in October 2010[21]

On 31 August 2010, the Daily Telegraph in its news article mentioned that Younis Khan was associated with alleged match-fixer Mazhar Majeed. Younis threatened to sue the Daily Telegraph over the fact that they posted false information about Younis. The Daily Telegraph admitted that they incorrectly reported that Younis Khan was affiliated with Mazhar Majeed. After a full public apology by the Daily Telegraph, Younis dropped the defamation charges against the newspaper[22] The Pakistan Cricket Board subsequently announced that they had successfully reconciled with Younis Khan and that they intended to use him on the tour of South Africa in October 2010 as a replacement for the injured Mohammad Yousuf[23] On his comeback ODI against South Africa, Younis Khan scored 54 runs. Younis then confirmed a statement by Pakistan captain Rashid Latif that he had not apologised to the PCB for his actions. As he believed he had committed nothing wrong. He also stated that the PCB chairman Ijaz Butt did not ask Younis to apologise either.[24][25] His on-field comeback went well when he scored 74 runs and anchored Pakistan's innings Pakistan eventually won the fourth ODI against South Africa by 1 wicket. His first test match in over 12 months also went well when he scored a century in the second innings of the first test against South Africa this century along with a 168 run partnership with captain Misbah-ul-Haq allowed Pakistan to salvage a draw. Younis eventually finished unbeaten on 131[26] During this match he along with Misbah-ul-Haq led Pakistan to another feat. By the end of his innings of 131, it became Pakistan's highest score of all time while batting in the fourth innings with Pakistan at 343/3.

New Zealand test series: 2011

Younis Khan walks back to the pavilion during a practice match against Auckland.

Younis Khan walks back to the pavilion during a practice match against Auckland.

Younis played in the two-match test series against New Zealand and Younis scored 23 in the first innings and was not required to bat in the second innings as Pakistan sealed a 10-wicket victory. During the first innings of the second test match Younis was given caught incorrectly at short-leg when on 73. In the post-match interview Younis took the view the umpires are humans they make mistakes but they should reduce the errors they make, also he called for the UDRS (Umpire Decision Review System) to be used in all test matches so that if an error is made it can be referred.[27]

Twenty20 Cricket (2007–present)

Pakistan captain Younis Khan announced his retirement from Twenty20 cricket after leading his team to the ICC World Twenty20 by beating Sri Lanka at Lord's. Sri Lanka suffered an 8 wicket thrashing.

"This is my last Twenty20 game [for Pakistan], so I am retiring from T20 internationals," Younis said, "I am now 31, I am old for this kind of cricket." No immediate announcement was made as to the identity of his successor as 20-over captain. On 29 July 2009, it was confirmed that Shahid Afridi would succeed him as the Twenty20 Captain.

However after Younis returned to the national setup, he announced that he was willing to play Twenty20 cricket for Pakistan as a senior batsman[28] Younis then confirmed that he was available to play in all three-formats of the game. He also announced that he was no longer in the race for the captaincy[29] After announcing his comeback to Twenty20 cricket Younis was selected for the three match Twenty20 series against New Zealand in December 2010. Younis played in all three-matches but struggled for form.

Sri Lanka Tour: 2014

On 9 July 2014, Younis khan has been recalled in one day team for the Sri Lanka tour of Pakistan.[30]

Younis Khan made 177 runs in the first innings of the first test as Pakistan went on to score 451 runs.[31] He was involved in two hundred-run partnerships as he went on to make a new record for most hundred run partnerships (51), beating the previous record of Javed Miandad (50). His performance was praised as he came in to bat at a very difficult time with the score being just 19/2 and played a major role in helping Pakistan post a commanding total.

Domestic career

Australian first-class cricket

In 2008–09, Younis is playing for the Southern Redbacks in Australia's domestic circuit on a short-term basis. He scored a century against Queensland Bulls in the first innings of a Sheffield shield match in Brisbane, which helped the Redbacks to win their first Shield match for a year.

County Cricket

Younis batting for Surrey in the FPt20 in England.

In 2005, Younis played county cricket for Nottinghamshire in England. In the 2007 English domestic cricket season, played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club as an overseas player. In doing so he was the third overseas Asian cricketer to play for Yorkshire following Sachin Tendulkar and Yuvraj Singh, and was succeeded by Pakistani player Inzamam-ul-Haq.

On his County Championship debut for Yorkshire, he made a disappointing 4 runs from 4 balls in his first innings, being bowled by Rikki Clarke of Surrey, and just 12 in his second innings.[32] However, on his one-day debut in the Friends Provident Trophy, Younis hit a superb 100 from 92 balls against Nottinghamshire to lead Yorkshire to victory.[33]

He made his first County Championship century, 106 off 151 balls, for Yorkshire against Hampshire at the Rose Bowl in the third match of the season and followed it up with an unbeaten double hundred, 202 off 290 balls, in the second innings to steer Yorkshire to a confident declaration. In doing so, Younis became the first Yorkshire player to score a century and a double century in the same match. Younis also made a useful contribution bowling during Hampshire's second innings, picking up four wickets for just 52 runs, however despite his and the team's efforts the match ended in a draw.[34] He repeated the feat of an unbeaten double century at Scarborough in a rain-affected drawn match with Kent. He played a superb innings to finish on 217* off just 252 balls with 18 fours and 6 sixes. He left Yorkshire following the 8-wicket drubbing of Glamorgan Dragons. However, the nature of the victory denied him of the chance to sign off in a fitting matter as he was not required to bat.

He signed for Surrey for the 2010 season.[35]

Indian Premier League

In 2008 Younis signed with the Indian Premier League and was drafted by the Rajasthan Royals for a bid of $225,000 USD. He however played only 1 match in the tournament against Kings XI Punjab and scored 1 run. Younis Khan has not appeared in the IPL since.[36]

Achievements

Playing style

Younis is regarded as one of the best players of spin bowling in the world, being particularly strong on the leg side. His favourite and trademark shot is the flick, but it has also been his shortcoming, with him being particularly prone to falling lbw during the early stages of his innings. He is also prone to getting down on one knee and driving extravagantly. But this flamboyance is coupled with grit. One of his main weaknesses is playing away from the body, he also has a tendency to leave straight balls, a trait that has been exploited by bowlers in the past, particularly by the Australian attack. Along with Mohammad Yousuf and the now retired Inzamam-ul-Haq, he formed a formidable middle order batting line up for Pakistan.

Younis is a skillful infielder, with a report prepared by Cricinfo in late 2005 showing that since the 1999 Cricket World Cup, he had effected the third highest number of run-outs in ODI cricket (joint with Andrew Symonds), with the highest success rate.[39] Best player of sweep against spinners in modern cricket.

Statistics

An innings-by-innings breakdown of Younis's Test match batting career, showing runs scored (red bars) and the average of the last ten innings (blue line).

Career best performances

As of 11 December 2011:

Batting Bowling
Score Fixture Venue Season Score Fixture Venue Season
Tests 313  Pakistan v  Sri Lanka Karachi 2009 2–23  Pakistan v  Sri Lanka Galle 2009
ODI 144  Pakistan v  Hong Kong Colombo (SSC) 2004 1–3  Pakistan v  Hong Kong Karachi 2008
T20I 51  Pakistan v  Sri Lanka Johannesburg 2007 3–18  Pakistan v  Kenya Nairobi 2007
FC 313  Pakistan v  Sri Lanka Karachi 2009 4–52 Yorkshire v Hampshire The Rose Bowl 2007
LA 144  Pakistan v  Hong Kong Colombo (SSC) 2004 3–5 Nottinghamshire v Gloucestershire Cheltenham 2005
T20 70 Peshawar Panthers v Islamabad Leopards Lahore 2009 3–18  Pakistan v  Kenya Nairobi 2007

Contract issue

Younis had been demoted from A category contract to B category contract by Pakistan Cricket Board.[40] This sparked a media controversy as analysts, former players and cricket fans expressed outrage against the decision with many stating that a player of Younis' stature does not deserve to be treated like this. Eventually the Board gave in to the pressure and Younis was promoted back to A category.

Personal life

Younis Khan married Amna on 30 March 2007, and their son Owais was born on 26 December 2007.[41]

Younis had to deal with a number of deaths in his family during 2005 and 2006. Earlier in 2005 he had to fly back from a tour to Australia after his father had died. Later in the year during England's tour to Pakistan, Younis' eldest brother, Mohammed Sharif Khan, who in Younis's words, taught him to play cricket, died aged 41 in a car accident in Ukraine.[42] Another older brother, Farman Ali Khan was only 39 when he was killed in a car accident in Germany in December 2006.

Younis was batting in the second ODI against West Indies in Faisalabad when the news of his brother's death reached the team management. Younis only came to know about the situation after he returned to the pavilion at the end of his innings. Younis immediately left for his home town Mardan and did not participate in any of the remaining matches.

Younis also mentioned his grief at the death of Bob Woolmer in March 2007 after Pakistan's exit from the World Cup. He stated that he saw Bob as a father figure after the loss of his own father and that he was able to share many personal thoughts with the cricket coach.[43]

During a tour of the West Indies in May 2011, Younis was given permission to return home early due to the death of his elder brother Shamshad Khan in Germany.[44]

He is known to enjoy fishing, when not playing cricket.[42]

On Monday 25 August 2014 Saad Khan son of Saeed Khan and nephew of former Pakistan captain Younis Khan died.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Younus or Younis Khan?. Retrieved on 22 Oct 2013.
  2. ↑ "Cricinfo – Record-eyeing Younis puts team first". Cricinfo. 24 February 2009. Retrieved 24 February 2009.
  3. ↑ "Rana, Malik get one-year bans, Younis and Yousuf axed from teams". Cricinfo. 10 March 2010. Retrieved 10 March 2010.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Younus Khan international cricket ban lifted". BBC. 5 June 2010. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
  5. ↑ "Australia tour of United Arab Emirates, 1st Test: Australia v Pakistan at Dubai (DSC), Oct 22–26, 2014". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
  6. ↑ http://www.espncricinfo.com/newzealand/content/story/105662.html
  7. ↑ Boundary avalanches and scoring rates. Cricinfo.com. Retrieved on 5 May 2007
  8. ↑ "Tests – Fastest to 4000 Career Runs". Cricinfo.com. Retrieved on 5 May 2007.
  9. ↑ ICC Batting Rankings 25 Feb 2009 LG ICC Cricket Rankings. Retrieved on 6 May 2007.
  10. ↑ LG ICC Best-Ever Test Batting Ratings. LG ICC Cricket Rankings. Retrieved on 6 May 2007.
  11. ↑ Yousuf handed Pakistan captaincy. BBC News. Retrieved on 5 May 2007.
  12. ↑ Younis back as Pakistan captain. BBC News. Retrieved on 5 May 2007.
  13. ↑ Younis rejects Pakistan captaincy. BBC News. Retrieved on 5 May 2007.
  14. ↑ Younis appointed Pakistan captain. Cricinfo.com. Retrieved on 27 January 2009.
  15. ↑ Younis wants 'magical' support. He also went on to say that he had a excellent relationship with former captain Shoaib Malik and expected his full support.Cricinfo.com. Retrieved on 27 January 2009.
  16. ↑ Younus resigns over fixing claims. BBC. Retrieved 13 October 2009.
  17. ↑ Premachandran, Dileep (10 March 2010). "Younis Khan banned indefinitely by PCB". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 11 March 2010.
  18. ↑ "Younus not selected for series Against England in 2010".
  19. ↑ "Pakistan news: Younis Khan best choice to lead Pakistan – Zaheer Abbas". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  20. ↑ "Pakistan news: Misbah-ul-Haq recalled because Younis unavailable – Mohsin". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  21. ↑ "Pakistan news: PCB send notice to Younis Khan". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  22. ↑ "England paper admits Younis Khan `mistake`". Dawn.
  23. ↑ "Pakistan news: Younis Khan and PCB resolve issues". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  24. ↑ "Younis capable of delivering against South Africa: Rashid Latif". Associated Press of Pakistan. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011.
  25. ↑ PTI (26 October 2010). "'Younis didn't apologise to get into team'". Cricketnext.
  26. ↑ Osman, Samiuddin (15 November 2010). "Younus signs of comeback with a century". Retrieved 18 November 2010.
  27. ↑ DAWN.COM 17 January 2011 (17 January 2011). "Younis philosophical after umpiring howler | Sport". Dawn.Com. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  28. ↑ "Pakistan news: Younis Khan could make Twenty20 comeback". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  29. ↑ "Younis wants to leave past behind". TheNews International (Zi Qad 13, 1431 A.H.). 22 October 2010. ISSN 1563-9479. Archived from the original on 31 October 2010.
  30. ↑ "Pakistan Recall Younis Khan after 16 months for Sri Lanka ODIs". Patrika Group. 10 July 2014. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  31. ↑ http://www.espncricinfo.com/sri-lanka-v-pakistan-2014/engine/match/745153.html. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  32. ↑ County Championship Division One, 2007 Season, Surrey v Yorkshire. Cricinfo.com. Retrieved on 7 May 2007.
  33. ↑ Younus century shoots down Outlaws. Yorkshire CCC. Retrieved on 7 May 2007.
  34. ↑ Younus top bowler, but Yorkshire lack final thrust. Yorkshire County Cricket Club. Retrieved on 7 May 2007.
  35. ↑ "Surrey sign Younus Khan but miss Brian Lara". BBC Sport. 18 May 2010. Retrieved 12 June 2010.
  36. ↑ http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/player/43652.html
  37. ↑ . 18 May 2010 http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/stats/index.html?class=1;team=7;template=results;type=fow. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  38. ↑ http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/records/batting/most_runs_career.html?class=1;id=7;type=team. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  39. ↑ Basevi, Trevor (8 November 2005) Statistics – Run outs in ODIs. Cricinfo.com. Retrieved on 5 February 2007.
  40. ↑ "PCB Demotes Younis Khan, Leaves Former Pak Captain Miffed". ndtv.com. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
  41. ↑ Warne's captaincy has impressed me. bigstarcricket.com. Retrieved on 6 May 2007.
  42. ↑ 42.0 42.1 "Bigstar Players : Younis Khan : On the Spot". Retrieved 27 June 2009.
  43. ↑ The Worst Weekend of My Life. bigstarcricket.com. Retrieved on 6 May 2007.
  44. ↑ Bereaved Younis Khan to return home. Cricinfo.com. Retrieved on 8 May 2011.

External links

Preceded by
Shoaib Malik		 Pakistani national cricket captain (ODI & Tests)
2009 		Succeeded by
Mohammad Yousuf
Preceded by
Shoaib Malik		 Pakistani national cricket captain (T20I)
2009 		Succeeded by
Shahid Afridi