Pakistan eyeing revenge against India: Younus

Johannesburg:

Six years have passed since their humiliating loss to India here in a World Cup match but Pakistan captain Younus Khan says the defeat still hurts and his team would be eyeing revenge when the two sides clash in the Champions Trophy on September 26.

In a 2003 World Cup match here, Pakistan lost the match despite defending a competitive 270 owing to batting fireworks of Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar.

"It hurts. I played that match. We scored 270 and still lost. A score of 250 in these conditions is considered safe. But the way Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag batted, and backed by Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh, we lay beaten. That defeat still hurts," Younus said in a pre-tournament press conference here.

"Indeed, we have lost to India in most of these ICC match-ups except only once. Ab hamara bhi jeetne ka haq banta hai (even we deserve to win sometimes now)," he added. Younus said he wished there were more matches between the two sides.

"If you get beaten, it's a long wait to get even. It keeps hurting you," he quipped.

Also hurting Younus and his team-mates are accusations from former players and media back home that Pakistani players might be involved in match fixing.

"Those who make these accusations should think before speaking. It affects youngsters. But being a cricketer from the sub-continent. We are used to such pressures. A player from the sub=continent faces more pressure out of the field than on it. That's why cricketers who survive it are truly great," he said.

"Somebody like Sachin Tendulkar is really great because he has withstood the pressure for all these years and still succeeded," he added.

Younus fractured his little finger here during nets on Friday but played down the injury scare.

"It's a little fracture. Nothing serious. We will assess it on Monday. Hopefully it should be alright," he said.