http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/apr-2007/15/sports1.php
Shoaib Malik gets Pakistan captaincy
ASHER BUTT
LAHORE - The Pakistan Cricket Board has decided to hand over the captaincy of the national team to all-rounder Shoaib Malik, The Nation learnt on Saturday.
All eyes were on Younis as next skipper after Inzamam-ul-Haq resigned. However, Younis Khan refused to take up the captaincy.
However, sources inside the PCB disclosed that the PCB chairman, all of its directors and chief operating officers came round to agreeing on Shoaib Malik as the captain of the team.
Although the decision has been made but its formal announcement would come in a couple of days. The PCB is likely to name his captain on long term basis instead of series to series basis.
It seems for the moment that the PCB has sorted out the captaincy problem but it has yet to address the grouping problem in the wake of a number of aspirants and their supporters in the playing eleven.
Some of the seniors that include Muhammad Yousuf, Abdul Razzak, Shoaib Akhtar have also shown their desire to lead the team while Salman Butt was also one of the players taken as one of the candidate for the job.
Yousuf was reported by a newswire agency as saying that if he was offered, he was ready to take the captaincy.
"I do not feel any pressure and I feel eligible more than anybody after my recent performance," said he.
"In this crisis situation I think I would be the right choice to lead the team," he added.
Similar views were expressed by all-rounder Abdul Razzak. "I and ready to take the captaincy and would prove to be one of the best," said he.
Shoaib Akhtar was on a number of occasion seen challenging the captaincy of Inzamam-ul-Haq.
PCB chairman said that various names were considered. The chairman also had meetings with Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Yousuf, Shoaib Malik and others.
But he recently said that the new captain would be a senior player and on that count Salman was to miss out. Besides, he was out of the team and had yet to confirm his place as a solid opener. And in seniority Yousuf was the top most but his excessive inclination towards religion and questions over his fitness made the PCB look for other options. In Shoaib Akhtar and Shahid Afridi's case, the fitness of the former and the slogging style of the latter stammered their chances, leaving Malik alone in the race for captaincy.
The PCB chairman said that the PCB's first priority was the appointment of captain on long-term basis followed by the announcement of the 30 probable players and the selection committee.
Ashraf said that series against Sri Lanka to be played in Duabi in May would not be ruled out whereas Pakistan team will tour England in July to play two One-day Internationals.
An official of the board said that Malik fulfils the criterion set for the captain. But in the recent years Malik has been nursing his elbow injury and has also been among the suspect bowler. "He is fit, plays for the team and has with his form ensured place in the team," said an official of the board.
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