Younis Khan makes a surprise comeback to Pakistan's ODI squad

Younis is set to make his ODI comeback after 8 months

Veteran Pakistani cricketer Younis Khan has been included in the Pakistani ODI team to play England in the UAE. The 37-year old will feature in the ODI XI after a gap of more than 8 months, reports Geo News. The PCB made the announcement on Tuesday and have included Younis’ name in the 15-man squad.

The legendary batsman, who recently eclipsed Javed Miandad to became Pakistan’s leading run-scorer in tests, will be looking to live up to the expectations of the selectors when Pakistan play England in a 4-match ODI series starting November 11.

Younis Khan’s hard work and consistency seemed to have paid off as the selectors have given the veteran batsman a golden opportunity to prove his critics wrong, who live by the fact that Younis is only a test player. But records suggest that the batsman has been an exceptionally talented player in the ODI format too over the years.

In 264 ODIs, Younis has notched up 7240 runs at an average of over 31. The 37-year-old has also 7 hundreds and 48 half-centuries to his name, with a career best score of 144. Barring a few failures, including the recent 2015 World cup debacle, Younis has replicated his test form and has been consistent ever since his debut in 2000.

The squad also saw the inclusion of tall pacer Mohammed Irfan and Anwar Ali, in addition to Mohammed Rizwan. Young left arm spinner Zafar Gohar was included in place of the injured Imad Wasim. The remainder of the squad did not see much surprises.

Pakistan are currently enjoying a 1-0 lead in the ongoing three-match test series, and have slightly gained the upper hand in the third test thus far. They will be looking to register another victory in Sharjah and move up to number two on the ICC Test team rankings.

With their reliable batsman Shoaib Malik announcing a shock retirement from test cricket on Tuesday, the all-rounder will look to hone his skills and concentrate more on the limited-overs format for his country. Without the services of Shahid Afridi and Misbah-ul-Haq, the onus will be on the younger generation of cricketers to deliver results for Pakistan and drive them to success. Pakistan’s ODI squad for England series: Shoaib Maqsood, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Azhar Ali, Muhammad Hafeez, Younus Khan, Ahmed Shehzad, Shoaib Malik, Wahab Riaz, Yasir Shah, Bilal Asif, Aamir Yamin, Rahat Ali, Zafar Gohar, Anwar Ali, Mohammad Irfan and Mohammad Rizwan.