Younis has no replacement

By the time Pakistan wrap up their Test series against the West Indies, the team will lose two of their most formidable and dependable batsmen -- Younis Khan and Misbahul Haq. Younis will by then have crossed a great milestone – 10,000 Test runs and the country’s first batsmen to do so. Only 12 other players, all cricketing legends in their own right, are members of that exclusive club. The retirement of the two richly talented players though inevitable came within days of each other. This is only fair – for the two men have put on a total of 3,015 runs together – most by a Pakistani pair in Test matches. The pair have 15 century or more stands between them. They have worked in tandem for so long and have brought so much delight to their doting fans. For their opponents, they have both been a thorn in the side.

In a career studded with records in multiple formats, Younis has maintained his form in a rare but successful fashion: his middle order presence brought stability to Pakistan because he performed best when the team was in crisis. Discovered by fellow cricketers Rashid Latif and Saeed Anwar, Younis has never looked back, going from strength to strength and from one record to another. There are also other stellar feats as young leader of the Twenty20 squad that lifted the championship trophy in 2009.

Besides his batting, Younis has shone brightly as a fielder and great catch-taker. Even in the best of times, Pakistan’s fielders haven’t been up to the mark. But Younis has rarely missed a trick. Many of his performances can be attributed to sheer grit and commitment. And if there was one quality he brought to the entire team that would have to be his sense of enthusiasm. By now one hopes it would have rubbed off most of his other teammates.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 10^th, 2017.

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