World Cup-winning captain Younis Khan has suggested that Fakhar Zaman or Mohammad Rizwan should replace Babar Azam as the captain of the national ODI and T20I teams. Babar recently stepped down from the captaincy role, citing his desire to focus more on his batting.
Younis Khan himself was honored with a special presentation at Adelaide Oval on Thursday. The legendary batter, who arrived in Australia earlier that day, received an official South Australia Redbacks cap from Mark Cosgrove, a former Australian cricketer and current High-Performance Coach for the South Australian Cricket Association (SACA). Younis had previously represented the Redbacks during the 2008-09 season.
Pakistan legend believes that Babar Azam will benefit massively from relinquishing his captaincy duties. Khan, a seasoned cricketer with 118 Test matches, 265 ODIs, and 25 T20Is under his belt, emphasized that Pakistan should avoid the tendency to appoint their "biggest player" as captain.
Mohammad Rizwan or Fakhar Zaman: Who will replace Babar Azam as Pakistan captain?
"Stepping away from the captaincy will be beneficial for Babar Azam. In our culture, we often make the biggest player the captain, which I believe is a mistake. Either Mohammad Rizwan or Fakhar Zaman should be considered for the role," Younis told the reporters at Adelaide Oval.
Pakistan is set to tour Australia in November, where they will compete in three ODIs and three T20Is. Wishing them success, Younis Khan also urged Pakistan cricket to address their selection issues.
"I hope the Pakistan men's cricket team performs well in Australia. The current squad includes young players, and there are certainly some issues with team selection that need to be addressed," he added.
Younis Khan also commended red-ball coach Jason Gillespie for his contributions to the development of Pakistan cricket.
“I have played cricket with Jason Gillespie; he is working hard to improve the Pakistan team. However, there needs to be better decision-making when it comes to selection," Younis concluded.
After being bulldozed by Bangladesh in the recently-concluded series, Pakistan will next lock horns with England in a three-match Test series which is slated to start from October 7.
