Younis refuses to direct curators

LAHORE: Pakistan captain Younis Khan has refused to dictate to the Pakistan Cricket Board curators on what type of pitches should be prepared in Abu Dhabi and Dubai for the forthcoming one-day series against Australia.

"Recently a meeting was held in which the chief curator of the PCB Agha Zahid, groundsman Mohammad Bashir and Pakistan team management including the coach, assistant coach, manager and Younis took part," The Jang reported.

"At the meeting, Younis was asked to give instructions in writing on the pitches but he flatly refused. Younis told everyone he thought the meeting was a waste of time and preparation of pitches is the responsibility of the curators not the captain," the report said.

It said Younis had made the point that he would not like to interfere in the working of the ground staff but they should know that universally what sort of pitches are ideal for Test and one-day matches.

"Younis said his job was to encourage and motivate his players to do their best on any sort of pitches or under any conditions. And that the players were professionals and should learn to perform on any pitch," the report said.

Apparently the meeting was called and Younis asked to give his recommendations in writing because of the criticism faced by the PCB over the preparation of dead tracks for the Test series against Sri Lanka.