LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board on Thursday confirmed the appointment of former captain Younis Khan as batting coach of the Pakistan men’s national cricket team until, at least, the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022, which is scheduled to be held in Australia in October-November with the final on November 13.
Younis had earlier accompanied Pakistan to England this summer and will now continue with his responsibilities for the upcoming series in New Zealand for which the side departs on November 23.
When not traveling with the national side, Younis will be based at the Hanif Mohammad High Performance in Karachi as a batting coach. A work programme will be developed with the National High Performance team.
Younis, scored 10,099 runs at over 52 in 118 Tests; 7,249 runs in 265 ODIs and 442 runs in 25 T20Is. He has scored most Test centuries for Pakistan, 34, while his career-best 313 against Sri Lanka in Karachi in 2009 lifted him to No.1 position in the ICC rankings.
Younis also captained Pakistan to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2009 victory in England.
PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan here : “I am delighted that Younis will now be with for, at least, the next two years as our batting coach. The feedback we received about Younis’ impact in a short period of time in England was excellent.
His work ethics, commitment and knowledge are second to none, and I am confident that his appointment will benefit a number of talented batsmen who have either recently broken into the national side or are knocking on the door of international cricket.
“The PCB will also be utilising Younis Khan’s expertise and skills when he’s not on national duty as he will help local batsmen hone their skills.
This is part of the PCB’s strategy to appoint highly-qualified and respected coaches across all major centres of the country so that we can start producing cricketers who can represent Pakistan with distinction.
“This High Performance Centre element follows the recruitment of Mohammed Yousuf, who is based at the National High Performance Centre, meaning that the PCB has two of the very best contemporary ex-batters adding significant value and fulfilling important roles with developing and guiding the current and the future generation of Pakistan batsmen.”
Younis Khan said : “I am pleased to join the Pakistan cricket set-up on a long-term basis. I felt honoured when I was given the opportunity this summer and thoroughly enjoyed my time, and I now look forward to continuing the work with the same group of people on an important tour of New Zealand.
“I am particularly happy that my scope of work has been extended beyond the national duties.
I am equally interested and keen at working at the domestic level by identifying potential batsmen and then helping them improve their skills.
“However, I want to remind all fans and followers that there is a process to achieve excellence and while some improvements can be noticed quickly, this will require lots of hard work, perseverance and patience before the required skills are embedded and start producing consistent results.”
Meanwhile, the PCB has also appointed former Test spinner Arshad Khan as Pakistan women’s national cricket team’s bowling coach for one year.
Arshad played nine Tests and 58 ODIs, taking 32 and 56 wickets, respectively.
Arshad’s appointment has come within a month after former Bermuda and Glamorgan captain David Hemp was appointed head coach of the national side.
Arshad will take up the role following the remaining four HBL Pakistan Super League 2020 where he is involved with Peshawar Zalmi and along with David, will be involved in the Women’s National T20 Championship.
Arshad Khan said : “This is an excellent opportunity to be working with women cricketers alongside David Hemp as we aim to collectively lift our national team in the upper half of the women’s draw.
“When I look around at a big number of former international cricketers involved in the present set-up, it motivates me to not only prove my worth but also justify the faith imposed on me.
“I now keenly look forward to looking at the available pool of women cricketers in the Women’s National T20 Championship and will then work on a strategy with David on how we move forward. This will be a demanding assignment and I am up for the challenge.”
Players Support Personnel for Pakistan’s tour to New Zealand:
Pakistan men’s national team – Mansoor Rana (Manager), Misbah-Ul-Haq (head coach), Shahid Aslam (assistant coach), Waqar Younis (bowling coach), Younis Khan (batting coach), Abdul Majeed (fielding coach), Cliffe Deacon (physiotherapist), Ibrahim Badees (team and social media manager), Malang Ali (team masseur), Dr Sohail Saleem (team doctor), Talha Ejaz Butt (analyst), Col (retd) Usman Anwari (security manager) and Yasir Malik (strength & training coach),
Shaheens – Ijaz Ahmed (manager and head coach), Mohtashim Rashid (assistant manager & fielding coach), Rao Iftikhar (bowling coach), Hafiz Naeem (physiotherapist), Saboor Ahmed (trainer), Usman Hashmi (analyst) and Mohammad Imran Ali (masseur).
