Intikhab for new captain for series against India

Former Pakistan cricket captain Intikhab Alam said that Shoaib Malik could not impress as captain and it would be better if the Pakistan cricket Board find a new captain for the home series against India.

Talking with media, Intikhab Alam said that Shoaib Malik has no ability to combine players in the country and he was proved a failure as captain after losing from South Africa and India.

He said that vice-captain Misbah-ul-Haq may be a better candidate for captaincy.

Shoaib Malik defends his captaincy

Shoaib Malik has defended his 14-month tenure as Pakistan captain amid speculation that a leadership change could be in the offing after the resignation of Nasim Ashraf as chairman of the PCB.

"I did not tell anybody to make me captain,"

Malik told the Karachi-based Dawn.

"I was chosen to lead Pakistan and I have been doing the job in the best possible manner."

Malik highlighted Pakistan's successes during his time in charge.

"We did well in the World Twenty20 [where Pakistan reached the final], and remember, Pakistan also won 12 consecutive one-dayers with me as captain."

Bangladesh and Zimbabwe were whitewashed in a couple of bilateral series, results which are primarily responsible for Malik's 20-10 win-loss record in ODIs.

"A record is a record,"

he said,

"and the opponents we play is not under my control."

Pakistan went on to win the Kitply Cup, a tri-nation tournament in Bangladesh, but doubts about Malik's captaincy persisted when they failed to reach the final of the Asia Cup, which was held in Karachi. Pakistan also lost their two Test series when he was in charge, first against South Africa at home, and then in India.

However, Malik's deputy, Misbah-ul-Haq, said he had no aspirations to become Pakistan captain.

"Obviously, leadership brings extra load of responsibility and I am enjoying my present status of vice-captain in the team,"

he said.

"I know it is a great honour to be the captain of the team but I feel content where I am."

Malik's comments come a day after Intikhab Alam, the former Pakistan captain, criticised his leadership abilities.

"I don't think he has the ability to keep players together,"

Alam told the Associated Press on Tuesday.

"Malik is not impressive at all and it's better the PCB should start looking for a new captain to lead the side against India at home."

I didn't want captaincy without Woolmer - Younis

Younis Khan has revealed he would have been Pakistan's captain had it not been for the sudden death of Bob Woolmer, the former South Africa and Pakistan coach. Woolmer died during the World Cup in the West Indies last year, and Younis said he would have taken up the captaincy with Woolmer as coach.

Younis had been offered the captaincy following Inzamam-ul-Haq's resignation but turned it down citing the mental strain brought about by Woolmer's death, the subsequent trauma and the failed World Cup campaign. Younis, who had been Inzamam's vice-captain for two years, had been widely tipped as his successor.

"Woolmer was a great human being and a good coach. I liked working with him. If he had remained coach I would have taken up the captaincy when the board made me the offer after Inzamam's resignation,"

Younis told PTI.

"Being captain is a big responsibility and I would have only felt comfortable if a coach like Bob was there."

With Younis not willing, the Pakistan board appointed Shoaib Malik as captain. Malik has been criticised in the past throughout his tenure but Younis felt he should be given time.

"Malik is not a bad captain and he needs to be given more exposure and opportunities,"

he said.

"The board must be patient with him."

Younis suggested the new PCB chairman should be appointed after considerable thought.

"I believe the chairman should be a professional who knows cricket closely and can communicate with the players,"

he said. The position was left vacant when Nasim Ashraf stepped down soon after president Pervez Musharraf's resignation.

Afridi Won`t Say No To Captaincy

Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi would be willing to take on the captaincy if current skipper Shoaib Malik is ruled out of the forthcoming one-day international series against Zimbabwe through injury.

Malik is doubtful for the five-match series against the African nation due to an ankle problem and Afridi is keen to stand in.

"Of course I will take up captaincy if offered,"

he told The News.

"Every cricketer dreams of leading his country and I'm no exception. I've played for Pakistan for more than 12 years and it would be great to bow out (of international cricket) after having captained Pakistan."

The 27-year-old is currently leading the Patron's XI in a four-day game against Zimbabwe and believes the tourists will present Pakistan with a stiff challenge.

"I believe Zimbabwe are a very good one-day side and it will be a different ball game in the ODI series against them,"

he added.

Shoaib Malik denies rift speculation

Shoaib Malik, Pakistan's under-fire captain, has dismissed speculation that rifts are emerging in his side after losses to India and South Africa under his leadership. Malik, who was appointed captain after the World Cup, has been retained as leader until December 2008 by the Pakistan board, despite the poor start to his tenure.

Pakistan has been rife with talk that two camps have emerged in the team, one supporting Younis Khan's push for captaincy and the other behind the incumbent Malik. This was, Malik said however, just talk.

"It hurts to end the year on a disappointing note with defeats in India. But there is no truth in rumours of differences within the team,"

he said.

"The team has been playing as a unit and that is why we managed to draw the last two Tests in India. The seniors have been extending full co-operation and I am happy with my position as captain."

Malik pointed out that injuries to key players, particularly in the fast bowling department, cost Pakistan heavily through the tour. "It made a big difference to our performance because our bowling lacked bite. In the one-day series we fought hard and it was a close rubber. In the Delhi Test one bad session cost us the match.

"I try to take some positives out of the criticism. But everyone should realise that no captain likes to lose and neither does any team want to end on the losing side. But the fact is we lost in India because of some unseen problems."

Malik also defended his performances as a batsman while captain: he has scored one Test fifty in six innings since he took over but is averaging 38.33, higher than his career average, in 13 ODIs with three fifties.

"Every professional cricketer when he is on the field is under pressure to perform and the same is for me. And I don't think my performance as a player has been that bad as captain. But there is a need for me to be more consistent,"

he admitted.

The new year, Malik hopes, will bring a change in fortune for his side.

"I am hopeful that we will have a better year in 2008. The team has potential and is united. We just need to lift ourselves in some areas particularly in the fielding.

"We will try some new players against Zimbabwe to check the depth of our talent but the Australia series would be our real test and we need to be well prepared for it."

Malik missed the last two Tests against India because of an ankle injury. That injury, he said, had still not healed fully. He has been advised to keep the plaster on and rest for at least another week. His next assignment doesn't begin until January 26, when Pakistan take on Zimbabwe for the first of five ODIs.

Shoaib Malik under the scanner after series loss in India

Nothing stirs Pakistan cricket more than defeat by India. A first-ever Test series loss in India in 27 years - preceded by the ODI series reverse - and particularly the insipid manner of defeat has ensured that discontent with the status quo is gathering strength.

The prime target is the captaincy. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has reiterated its full support to Shoaib Malik, the incumbent, till December 2008. But Younis Khan's recent change of heart over the captaincy has clouded matters.

Younis, it is emerging, is not only open to the idea of captaincy now but is actively keen on it. Though Nasim Ashraf, chairman of the board, has publicly said it is too late - still smarting, perhaps, from Younis's earlier refusal - Younis is now understood to have support from quarters within the board, as well as from key players within the team.

The support is understandable, says one official.

"His performances while captain, in particular the fact that his batting has been largely unaffected by leadership and that he is a certain starter in any Test side, weigh heavily in his favour."

By contrast, Malik's continuing inability to convince people of his Test credentials, more even than concerns about his leadership or attitude, do him no favours.

One official, broadly sympathetic to Malik as captain, even admitted

"he makes the middle order by default, because there is no competition, no other real candidate. The captaincy is officially not available to Younis, but in Pakistan you can never say."

As an endorsement for continuity, it is hardly convincing.

And there is also reason to believe that the selectors, if put in a dilemma by the credentials of a better-performing middle-order candidate, would not hesitate to drop Malik from the Test side.

The issue is further complicated by what more than one tour official privately admits to be "some friction" between Malik and Younis. The rift is thought to have emanated from certain selectorial decisions, including the decision initially to send Shahid Afridi back after the ODIs, one Younis was unhappy with. The rift could have a potentially divisive effect on the team.

One source close to the team management also suggested the back injury that kept Umar Gul out of the series might not have been so serious as to rule him out; the implication being that his not playing is somehow linked to his closeness to Younis and being part of that camp. Younis is also said to be less than pleased by the insistence of Geoff Lawson, the coach, and Malik to play Mohammad Sami in the last two Tests.

Captaincy aside, the role of Lawson is also being discussed. The chairman gave him his public backing, but not before questioning - also publicly - why he was unable to extract better performances from his team. Some senior players admit to being underwhelmed by Lawson thus far.

Even one official who supported the decision to appoint Lawson now acknowledges that

"so far, we have not seen anything outstanding from him, strategy or tactics-wise. I am inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt, because it is still early, but certainly he has not been as impressive so far as we hoped."

Nothing so far suggests that any key decisions will be taken in a hurry. For one, there is no pressing need: Pakistan's next assignment is a low-key five-match ODI series against Zimbabwe. But in March, Australia visit and one official admitted "that will be the make-or-break series". Change might pre-empt it, or change may come as a result of it, but change, it increasingly appears, may be inevitable - and soon.

Younis Khan willing to lead Test side

In a surprise change of heart, Younis Khan has said he is now willing to lead the Test side if the Pakistan board asked him to do so.

Younis has long shown a reluctance to lead Pakistan. He gave up the captaincy - and swiftly took it back - last year before the Champions Trophy, and then turned down the post again after the Caribbean World Cup this year.

And he was again an unwilling stand-in captain after Shoaib Malik's ankle injury ruled him out of the last two Tests against India.

"If the board wants me to lead the team, I can do it. But first we [himself and the officials] need to sit down, discuss and finalise some things,"

Younis told PTI.

Younis had been the official vice-captain for two years under Inzamam-ul-Haq and was widely expected to take over once Inzamam resigned. At the time of his refusal, he also stepped down from the vice-captain's role, before surprisingly accepting for the tour to India.

"I only agreed to be vice-captain for the Indian tour because of the importance of the series. If the matches had been against any other team I might not have accepted this responsibility."

"But now if the board feels I can be a good Test captain, I am willing to do it but after talking to them,"

he said.

"If the team can do well under my captaincy I would be very happy but I am not asking anyone for the job. This is the board's prerogative whatever they want to do."

The board has, however, once again expressed its full faith in Malik to retain the post until December 2008.

Shoaib Malik likely to be named captain

Shoaib Malik has emerged as the leading candidate for the Pakistan captaincy after discussions between Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials over the weekend. An official announcement on the decision is expected in the next two to three days.
The appointment, if Malik agrees, is likely to be till September, when the situation will be reviewed again ahead of a hectic international season that includes a full series in India and a home series against Australia.
The discussions centred on Malik and Salman Butt but it was narrowed down to the former as Butt currently does not hold down a place in either the Test or ODI sides. "In principle, a decision has been taken to offer it to Malik. There isn't really another suitable candidate around," one official told Cricinfo.
"We have a few assignments in the pipeline over the summer. There may be a series against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi and a match in England so we are talking about Malik for that. We will review the situation in September, ahead of the home season," he added.
Nasim Ashraf, chairman PCB, refused to confirm or deny that Malik would be offered the captaincy but said that a decision was imminent. "No decision has been taken yet," Ashraf told Cricinfo. "We will make the decision in the next two to three days."
Whoever does become the captain, Ashraf added, would take charge of both the Test and ODI sides and is likely to be appointed, initially, on a series-by-series basis. "We will have one captain for both. I think in Pakistan cricket, it is advisable to have one leader in charge of both sides.
"Initially the appointment will be on a series-by-series basis. But eventually, before the India tour later this year, we will make a longer-term appointment," he added.
Though Malik has only played 18 Tests, in a number of different positions in the order, he has been earmarked for leadership by a number of people over the last two years, including Bob Woolmer. He has, however, become a vital cog in Pakistan's ODI outfit and has been among the most consistent batsmen for Pakistan in that form of the game since 2004.
There is a concern that senior players might not so readily accept a younger player as captain but at least Mohammad Yousuf, who said recently he was willing to become captain if it was offered, has sought to play down those fears. "If the PCB wants to appoint a junior player as the future captain, I absolutely have no issue with it", he told reporters on Monday.
"I have never been greedy. I want to serve my country, whether as captain or as an ordinary player, that's enough honour for me."
Younis Khan was originally in place to take over as captain after Inzamam-ul-Haq's resignation and retirement from ODIs, but he turned down the offer citing the mental strain of taking on one of cricket's toughest jobs

Not worthy of captaincy, thinking to retire from one-day: Younus

KARACHI: Pakistan cricket vice captain, Younus Khan, discarding the offer of captaincy, has expressed his intention to take the retirement from the one-day cricket also after a month or two.

Younus Khan said that his performance in the World Cup was not worthy of his taking over the captaincy. Besides, he has informed the PCB that he was mulling over taking retirement for one-day cricket after one/two months. He said that the test cricket was the real cricket.

Younus Khan told that the PCB offering him captaincy with full authority had said that the new and stable selection committee would also be constituted. However, he said that he has refused to accept this offer, but he was thankful to the PCB for considering him for this coveted position, he added. He said that the way the team failing in the World Cup was welcomed on its return hurt him most.