Younis Khan returns to Pakistan's ODI side for series against Sri Lanka

Pakistan batsman Younis Khan returns to the ODI side

The Pakistan selectors have announced the Pakistan Test and ODI squads for their tour of Sri Lanka next month. The two-match Test series between the two sub-continental giants starts on 6th August and ends on the 18th. The two sides then participate in a 3-match ODI series which starts on 23rd August and ends a week later on the 30th.

Mohammad Hafeez has been dropped from the Test squad for the short 2-match series while Umar Akmal is making a return to the Test side after a gap of almost 3 years. The major talking point, though, is the return of Younis Khan to 50-over cricket.

Younis’ last ODI series was, more than a year ago, in March 2013 against South Africa in South Africa. He was unsurprisingly dropped after the series, as he yielded poor returns of 116 runs at an average of 23.2 from the 5-match ODI series. In that period, he has consistently found himself out of the reckoning in the 50-over format. Younger players like Sohaib Maqsood, Sharjeel Khan and Fawad Alam had been given a go instead of Younis and, to their credit, performed reasonably well.

With that being the case, it is indeed surprising that Younis has been brought back into the fold at the age of 36. The only way his selection in the ODI squad against Sri Lanka could be justified is if the selectors have him in mind for the 2015 50-over World Cup taking place in Australia and New Zealand.

If the 36-year-old is in the reckoning for the World Cup, then it is prudent to let him have some ODI cricket under his belt before the all-important World Cup. The conditions in Australia and New Zealand are extremely challenging for sub-continent batsmen in particular, and none of Pakistan’s batsmen have much experience of playing cricket in Australia and New Zealand. In such a situation, not only can Younis help by making big runs himself but can also impart his knowledge of the different pitches in Australia and New Zealand to the less experienced Pakistani batsmen.