Lahore: Former Pakistan opener Aamer Sohail said that Younis Khan's appointment as the team's batting coach shows that the Pakistan Cricket Board could not trust head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq with the role. Misbah was also the batting coach of the team while holding the other two positions and Sohail said that batsmen may not feel comfortable talking about their problems to someone who is also a head coach and chief selector and hence the appointment of Younis was necessary.
"The fact is that Misbah-ul-Haq for reasons best known to the PCB, was given the roles of head coach and chief selector, and he was also looking after the position of batting coach," Sohail wrote on PakPassion.net.
"Many of us commented then that this was not a good idea as batsmen who are struggling in some aspect of their batting are unlikely to share their problems with the batting coach who happens to be the chief selector and the head coach as well."
"In that context, Younis Khan's appointment, whilst recognising his experience, is proof 0-2 that the PCB are accepting the fact that they made the wrong decision by entrusting Misbah with so many roles. What the PCB are implying is that Misbah is not a good enough batting coach which is why they had to bring in someone like Younis Khan into the picture as a batting consultant."
Sohail said that Misbah's history of being too defensive as a captain may make him a bad mentor for Babar, who is currently leading Pakistan in limited-overs cricket.
"If Babar has been identified as Pakistan's captain in at least two formats of the game, then it's incumbent upon the PCB to help him become the best captain he can be. This can be achieved by identifying any weaknesses in his leadership qualities and by good mentoring. But if Misbah is to be Babar's mentor, then we have a problem because he was himself criticised for being a defensive captain," he said.
"The onus is on Misbah to be honest about his own deficiencies as a captain and to make sure that Babar does not make the same mistakes he made, especially when it comes to making sure that the younger players are given good chances to ensure a brighter future for Pakistan cricket."
