Younis quits Pakistan Cup over umpiring row

KARACHI: Former Pakistan captain Younis Khan, who was leading Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the ongoing Pakistan Cup 2016, left the tournament mid-way in protest after he was served with a notice by match referee for criticising the standard of umpiring during his team’s previous two showdowns of the five-team affair in Faisalabad.

According to KP team sources, Younis got furious when he was shown the charge-sheet issued to him by match-referee Aziz-ur-Rehman after the fourth umpire Rashid Riaz approached the match referee, telling him that he came under scathing criticism from the former Pakistan captain after the match between KP and Punjab on Friday.

Sources said  that after KP snatched a two-run victory over Punjab in their second show on Friday, Younis did not go to the routine meeting despite being called by the match referee.

Later, when a KP team official showed the charge-sheet to Younis in his hotel room, he refused to receive it and decided to quit the event at a stage when his team needed his services.

He added that when Younis asked one of the on-field umpires that why he did not give Islamabad’s skipper Misbah-ul-Haq out lbw in their opening game, the umpire told him how he could give a decision against such a major player so early in his innings.

Sources said that Younis had purchased his return ticket and was scheduled to return to Karachi Saturday night.

“Younis has left Faisalabad and is going to Karachi,” a KP team source told this correspondent on Saturday.

A source close to the development said that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) General Manager Domestics Ali Zia also tried to convince Younis not to leave the tournament but his efforts also failed.

In his absence, experienced opener Ahmed Shehzad will lead KP who kept themselves in the hunt when after losing to Islamabad in their opener they stunned Shoaib Malik-led Punjab in a thriller on Friday.

It was learnt that KP would opt for Younis’ replacement if they beat Balochistan in their third clash on Sunday (today). Younis refused to comment on the matter when he was approached by ‘The News’.