‘PCB offers Younis to head HPC at Karachi’

KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has offered former Test captain Younis Khan the chance to head its High Performance Centre in Karachi besides working as batting consultant with the national team.

A reliable source in the Board said that Younis has been offered a full-time job as head of the HPC in Karachi at the National Stadium in addition to his role as batting consultant, a report by Press Trust of India agency said.

The 42-year-old Younis accompanied the Pakistan squad to England earlier this year but took time out as batting consultant in the home series against Zimbabwe.

The former top batsman is slated to accompany the Pakistan squad again to New Zealand for the full tour in December-January next year.

Last year, the PCB had also held negotiations with Younis to work as head coach with the Pakistan junior and ‘A’ teams or as batting coach at the High Performance Centre in Lahore but the talks failed over apparent issues of authority and pay package.

The PCB eventually appointed former Test batsman Ijaz Ahmed as head coach of the junior and ‘A’ teams.

Right-handed Younis, who smashed a Pakistan record 10,099 runs at a healthy average of 52.12 during an illustrious 118-Test career that ended in 2017, is said to have undergone a dramatic change to his personality and temperament while with the Pakistan team in England and head coach, Misbah-ul-Haq is said to have conveyed only good words about him to the PCB.

Younis himself has admitted that after making some mistakes in the past due to his temperament he has changed and mellowed down in life as he wants to contribute to Pakistan cricket by passing on his experience to the youngsters.