Little chance of me accepting captaincy again: Younus

Karachi:

The player rebellion that forced him to take a 'break' from international cricket continues to rankle Younus Khan, who says there is little chance of him accepting Pakistan's captaincy again even if he comes back to the side.

"Even when I make a comeback to the team, I see little chance of me becoming the captain again," the senior batsman, who opted out of the upcoming Test tour of New Zealand after admitting to having problems with a section of players, told 'The Dawn' newspaper here.

Younus revealed that he had offered to resign after failing to get control over the tension in the dressing room but the idea was rejected by Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ejaz Butt.

"The fact is that since I was out of form I was not able to control the team and when you can't control a team then you should not be leading the team that is why I took my decision to withdraw from New Zealand tour," he said.

"...in current circumstances I was not in a state of mind to lead the team or play cricket," he added.

Asked if some players deliberately underperformed in the ODI series loss to New Zealand to put him in a tight spot, Younus chose to sidestep the query.

"What can I say but the truth should be brought before the public by authorities. As far as I am concerned I have never believed in public relations and I have always played my cricket on merit. So, this complaint that I was not friendly with other players is pointless," Younus said.

"The fact is that when I am not scoring runs how can I tell others if they don't perform. I don't want to be a burden on the team that is why I decided to take a rest and when my form returns I will be back. Cricket is my bread and butter so I will be back playing in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy soon," he added.

Meanwhile, former PCB Chairman Tauqir Zia said Younus should have followed the example of Indian great Sachin Tendulkar and stepped down from the captaincy after failing to contribute substantially with the bat.

"I thought when Younus knew he was out of form and struggling for runs he should have stepped down himself and insisted on playing only as a batsman," Tauqir, who was PCB Chairman between 1999 and 2003, said.

"He should have followed the example of Sachin Tendulkar who stepped down as captain himself when he realised the pressure of captaincy was getting to him and he was not performing as a batsman. Today Tendulkar remains one of India's top players," he added.