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Ijaz Butt will take a few days to decide the fate of Pakistan skipper
Friday, October 16, 2009
By Khalid Hussain
KARACHI: Younis Khan on Thursday sat down on the bargaining table with Ijaz Butt in Lahore and told the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman that he will only change his mind about resigning as captain if his tenure is extended till the 2011 World Cup.
However, at the end of the meeting the duo failed to resolve a crisis which began with Younis’s decision to resign as captain and has snowballed into a major headache for the PCB.
The Pakistan skipper, who resigned on Tuesday as a protest against match-fixing allegations levelled at his team by the chief of a parliamentary committee, also made it clear during the ‘detailed meeting’ that he wanted more powers to ensure better results from his team.
Sources told ‘The News’ that overall it was quite a cordial meeting in which Younis offered to take back the captaincy though there were a few strings attached.
According to the sources, Butt told Younis that he would consider the conditions but will need some time before making a final decision.
Later, a brief PCB statement said that the Board will announce the details of the Younis-Butt meeting within the next few days. “Chairman PCB and Younis Khan met today. A detailed discussion was held. (The) details of this meeting will be announced in the next few days,” said the statement.
Sources said that Younis didn’t mince words when he told Butt that the uncertainty surrounding his captaincy is making his job more and more difficult.
He sought some guarantees from the PCB chief and also asked him to review the appointment of a couple of team officials.
If Butt decides to stick with Younis then there are chances that the Pakistan team which will be announced for next month’s limited-overs series against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi and Dubai might not include a few senior players.
It is an open secret Younis doesn’t enjoy very good relations with the team officials as well as some of the players. According to a source close to him, Younis wants Butt to give the team management and the players a clear message that the Board will continue backing him as captain even in difficult times.
Sources said that the allegation of Jamshed Dasti, the chairman of National Assembly’s standing committee on sports, only added fuel to fire and forced a frustrated Younis to resign as captain.
Dasti, a member of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), said after Pakistan’s defeat against New Zealand in the ICC Champions Trophy semifinal in South Africa that he would probe into reports that the national team may have deliberately thrown the game as well as its earlier match against Australia.
Sources said that Younis was left fuming even before that wild accusation because of the fact that Butt held a one-to-one meeting with vice-captain Shahid Afridi in Lahore last week. The meeting ignited speculations that the Board wanted Afridi as Pakistan’s one-day captain and even though Butt denied it, the damage was done.
“What Younis wants is an end to all this uncertainty,” said a source close to Younis. “He wants the players and the officials to know that he is their captain for at least the next two years so that they can stop conspiring against him,” said the source.
Meanwhile, Butt will hold a series of brainstorming sessions with the Pakistan team management, the captain and vice-captain in Lahore on Friday (today).
According to Board sources, the meeting is primarily aimed at discussing Pakistan’s performance in the Champions Trophy. However, it is expected that the team formation for next month series against New Zealand will also come under serious discussion.
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ISSN 1563-9479 
