Ex-players blast PCB for dumping Younis for England tour
By ANITuesday, June 22, 2010
KARACHI - Former Pakistani cricketers have expressed anger over former captain Younis Khan’s exclusion from the 17-man Test squad bound for England.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has given no reason for excluding 33-year-old Younis despite his indefinite ban for disciplinary offences having being overturned.
Former chief selector Iqbal Qasim said Younis was being punished for challenging his indefinite ban.
“I feel Younis has been victimized. He fought his case and was outspoken against the treatment and was dropped,” The News quoted Qasim, as saying.
Former batsman Basit Ali slammed the move, and said: “It’s the height of injustice to Younis.”
Meanwhile, former captain Rashid Latif said that, along with Younis, fast bowler Mohammad Sami and batsmen Faisal Iqbal and Khurrum Manzoor also deserved a place in the squad.
“I respect the selection, but four players - Younis, Sami, Iqbal and Manzoor - deserved places in the team,” Latif said.
Pakistan will play two T20 internationals and a couple of Test matches against Australia, and would then face the hosts England in four Tests, two T20 and five one-day games during the three-month long tour which will end on September 22.
Squad: (Twenty20): Shahid Afridi (capt), Salman Butt (vice capt), Shahzaib Hasan, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Umar Amin, Kamran Akmal, Abdul Razzaq, Mohammad Amir, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Shoaib Akhtar, Abdul Rehman, Wahab Riaz, Fawad Alam
Squad: (Tests): Shahid Afridi (capt), Salman Butt (vice capt), Imran Farhat, Yasir Hameed, Azhar Ali, Umar Amin, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal, Zulqarnain Haider, Umar Gul, Mohammad Asif, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir, Tanveer Ahmed, Saeed Ajmal, Danish Kaneria. (ANI)
|Strauss is eyeing an Oz Grand Slam in cricket|Sports[London {London, June 22 (ANI): Captain Andrew Strauss is aiming to lead England to an historic Grand Slam against the Aussies over the next two weeks.
Victory in the five-match NatWest Series - starting at the Rose Bowl today - will give skipper Strauss and his players dominance over Australia in every format of the game.he Sun quoted Strauss as saying: “That has a nice sound to it! Australia are the team to beat in one-day cricket and are a well-drilled unit - but we are confident.”ngland holds The Ashes and thrashed Australia in the final of last month’s World Twenty20.
Their two most recent 50-over showdowns with Australia resulted in a 6-1 thumping last September and then a nine-wicket defeat in the semi-final of the Champions Trophy in October.
But England have transformed their limited-overs form in recent months with Strauss and head coach Andy Flower preaching a brand of vibrant and fearless cricket.
Strauss added: “We had been bumbling along and not looking like a side that would threaten consistently against the best in the world. We had to ask some tough questions about how we could improve.”
Strauss admitted: “The reality is we’re all under pressure to make runs and as captain I’m no different. We’re full of confidence as a batting group.” (ANI)
