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What is your favourite Younis Khan knock in ODIs?

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Abdulm123

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Younis Khan might have been a mediocre limited overs cricketer but he still has had a few good lo knocks under his belt.
 
I remember Younis smashing in the death against us back in the late 2000's. Amazing knock that was!
 
England 2006, India 2007 and 2008 (Dhaka and Karachi). He was a forgettable ODI player but played some amazing innings.
 
I remember towards the end of Younis`s horrific odi career, he hit that selfish 100 against NZ that lost us the series. But my favorite knock was the one in 2008 where he went Sehwag mode on India.
 
From what I can remember, his century against NZ in the series a few months before the WC. I think it was the first match after the Peshawar school shootings. I was in a bad mood that day because I knew he had cemented his place in the WC Squad which I didn't want. I wasn't following cricket a lot when he played some of his other great ODI innings such as the ones in the last decade mentioned above so I can't include them.
 
hadi123 said:
From what I can remember, his century against NZ in the series a few months before the WC. I think it was the first match after the Peshawar school shootings. I was in a bad mood that day because I knew he had cemented his place in the WC Squad which I didn't want. I wasn't following cricket a lot when he played some of his other great ODI innings such as the ones in the last decade mentioned above so I can't include them.
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That fluke hundred was annoying. Taylor dropped a sitter in the slip when he was on 0, and it cemented his place in the 2015 World Cup squad.
 
Mamoon said:
That fluke hundred was annoying. Taylor dropped a sitter in the slip when he was on 0, and it cemented his place in the 2015 World Cup squad.
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Yes where he performed pathetically as expected. I was in a bad mood that day cos I knew that innings cemented his place and got in an argument with my dad. It was a good innings though, from what I remember.
 
I loved his 100 against India in the tri series tournament in 2008. I remember he'd had an absolute shocker of a tournament but in the final he delivered. It's a shame he wasn't able to be as dominant in ODis as he was in Tests because that would have given him global recognition and would have certainly cemented him as one of the greatest batsmen of all time. I was a massive YK fan but even I was disappointed the way in which he retired in ODis after the first game in the England series in the UAE but thankfully he bowed out of Tests more respectfully
 
Looking at Younis`s stats, Younis Khan had a purple patch in odi`s between 2006-2008. Why couldn't Younis continue his red hot form in Odis and why couldn't he convert his form in bilateral tournaments to icc tournaments? what went wrong?
 
Abdulm123 said:
Looking at Younis`s stats, Younis Khan had a purple patch in odi`s between 2006-2008. Why couldn't Younis continue his red hot form in Odis and why couldn't he convert his form in bilateral tournaments to icc tournaments? what went wrong?
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his greed to lead the team and overthrow Malik did him in for good. He spoilt the future of the seniors in his ilk like Yousaf and Razzaq, who had at least in them to sustain till the 2015 WC. They would have definitely helped in the big grounds of Aus, where you needed good technique players such as MoYo rather than hacks that were selected .... sad sad sad
 
Asia cup 2008 at Karachi vs India in super four stage Pakistan won the match by 8 wickets he made 123 runs from 117 balls
 
His three odi hundreds againts india
Mohali dhaka and karachi i guess
Could have been a better odi player but his attitude and ego got the better of him
 
That Hundred against England in 2006 (Rose Bowl) was high quality. Such a shame the man could not become a batsman who averages 40+ with a strike rate of 85+ in this format, he was so capable to do so but didn’t utilise his talent in this format!
 
Rana said:
That Hundred against England in 2006 (Rose Bowl) was high quality. Such a shame the man could not become a batsman who averages 40+ with a strike rate of 85+ in this format, he was so capable to do so but didn’t utilise his talent in this format!
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The teenager in me always hoped that he somehow get that average above 36 when it was 33 but then he regressed a lot and somehow managed to keep it above 30
 
Mir jibran said:
The teenager in me always hoped that he somehow get that average above 36 when it was 33 but then he regressed a lot and somehow managed to keep it above 30
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He was messed up by the captains he played under. Never truly played in one position and was playing in ridiculous batting positions at times.

The best Number 3 I have seen for Pakistan besides Babar Azam of course, yet there was a time when he was batting at 6 as well. Weird Pakistani tactics that make no sense at all some times.
 
The sad thing is, Younis Held the record as the second highest scorer in Pakistan for his 144 against Hong Kong, until it was broken by Imran Nazir who scored 160 against Zimbabwe. Now Fakhar Zaman has broken the record held by Saeed Anwar against Zimbabwe also.

We have always been a bunch of minnow Bashers when it comes to the odd big score.
 
Rana said:
He was messed up by the captains he played under. Never truly played in one position and was playing in ridiculous batting positions at times.

The best Number 3 I have seen for Pakistan besides Babar Azam of course, yet there was a time when he was batting at 6 as well. Weird Pakistani tactics that make no sense at all some times.
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His purple patch was between 2006-2008
He became odi captain in 2009 and then he almost killed his career
 
He was more of a Test batsman. He was probably not suitable for ODI.
 
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There was a high quality 100 against us in Mohali (2007) where Pakistan chased 320, match went till last over and more remembered for Afridi's big hits.
 
His knock against India at Mohali 2011 Semis.... What a match winning knock it was for the Indians.. Truly memorable.
 
Younis Khan played a good innings during the first game where Pakistan was chasing around 350 (2004 Samsung cup).

Pakistan got close to the target but fell short by 5 runs.
 
His century against us in the 2nd ODI during the 2007 ODI series. Spectacular knock.
 
Abdulm123 said:
Younis Khan might have been a mediocre limited overs cricketer but he still has had a few good lo knocks under his belt.
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For me, it's his unbeaten 50+ against Aussies in 2002 (2nd ODI of the historic 2-1 series victory in Australia). Pakistan had a notorious reputation for being bad chaser, and this chase was no different.

I got so anxious during the chase, I went from my home to a video-game store to pass time by hoping to avoid the innings (no social media then, so once you left your house, you were practically in the dark).

I got to the store, and sure enough the match was on, and YK was still batting.

"They'll bottle it for sure" I told the shopkeeper.
"Nahi sir aise tou matt kahen" he replied.

I went back home, and he was still fighting it out, and eventually we won the crucial 2nd ODI. YK battled against the likes of McGrath, Warne and Bichel. He was an instrumental part in us winning that historic series. That series win was an anomaly in an otherwise dark era of Pak cricket (mid 2001-2003, twilight of Wiki and Wasim).

An extraordinary Test batsman. Not so much in ODI Cricket. His 2011 WC innings against Sri Lanka was crucial as well.
 
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Younis' best knocks came in at #5/6 positions. Firstly he shouldn't have ever batted at 3. He was made for #6 role where he could play quick innings, steal singles and doubles and up the runrate. Would've made a great finisher if he batted at that position.

As for OP's question, my favourite Younis Khan knock was 70 odd match winning knock in ODI 2 against Australia in 2002 (it was an indoor game).
 
sweep_shot said:
He was more of a Test batsman. He was probably not suitable for ODI.
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Disagree. He wasn't a timid player at all. He had the ability to score at a good strike rate as well as just simply being a top class performer.

He performed well in ODI's between 2006-2009 and was well on his way to becoming a complete batsman.

I think it was the captaincy which is what sealed his fate into mediocrity. He thrived under respected characters like Inzamam and Misbah. He was way too hot headed to lead Pakistan himself and his batting suffered.
 
His 2006 century against England at the Rose Bowl was solid. Also liked his against India in 2007 & 2008.
 
Hardly any to pick, considering he is the worst ODI batsman to have played so many matches.
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OnThisDay?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OnThisDay</a> in 2008. Chasing a score of 308/7, Pakistan easily beat India by 8 wickets in a ODI in Karachi. Younis Khan and Misbah-Ul-Haq shared an unbroken 144-run partnership, with Younis finishing on 123* and Misbah 70* <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cricket</a> <a href="https://t.co/dcok3N9HFp">pic.twitter.com/dcok3N9HFp</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/1278638743826636803?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 2, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
Younis Khan was a much better ODI batsmen than his numbers suggest but after the oathgate revolt against his captaincy he was always in and out of the side and never the same force in ODI cricket as he had been prior to 2009.

Captaincy didn't affect his batting as he averaged a stunning 57.33 on his way to leading Pakistan to the 2009 World Cup. The team was turning into a real force under him with a lot of youngsters being brought to the fore and Pakistan performed pretty well in the 2009 Champions Trophy as well including an epic win against India.

But after the revolt against his captaincy coupled with several personal tragedies in his life including that of Bob Woolmer, who was a father figure for him, he wasn't the same player ever again not even in tests until a late career revival. Woolmer's death along with the demise of his brothers and nephews around the same time were the reason he didn't accept the captaincy after the 2007 World Cup when he had been groomed as the natural long term successor.

Most of his best performances came in and around the Woolmer era when Pakistan briefly became a team capable of chasing massive targets with Younis, Yousuf and Inzi forming Pakistan's strongest middle order since the 1970's.

Some of his best chasing knocks include:

56 not out in Melbourne against an ATG Australia. Man of the Match. (2002)

71 not out in the inaugural game in Abu Dhabi against India. Man of the Match. (2006)

101 in Southampton against England. Man of the Match. (2006)

117 in Mohali against India. Man of the Match. (2007)

123 not out in Karachi against India. Man of the Match. (2008)

73 in Dubai against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2010)

Some of his best knocks setting a target when batting first include:

93 in Durban against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2007)

108 in Dhaka against India in a final. Man of the Match. (2008)

101 in Abu Dhabi against West Indies with a rampant Gayle and Sarwan. Man of the Match. (2008)

72 in Colombo against finalists Sri Lanka in the 2011 World Cup. Best World Cup innings.

Most of these innings he played batting in the top order at number 3 when he was in fact a very accomplished batsmen in the finisher role batting at 6/7. He almost won Pakistan his first game on debut coming in at number 7 before getting run out on 46.

His 56 in Melbourne against an ATG Australia in 2002 to level the series is probably my favourite knock of his considering the conditions he was exposed to as a rookie. He came in at number 6 and took Pakistan to victory in a low scoring thriller with just 2 wickets remaining. It gave a glimpse into the ability of the man who would go onto become the greatest 4th innings batsmen of all time.

His numbers may have still been better had he cared more about his average than always trying to sneak in an extra run for the team's cause during the last ball of the innings and often sacrificing his wicket. Captaincy revolts, personal tragedies and even Pakistan not playing tests for an entire year in 2008 when he was at his peak were all obstacles he had to overcome but he went onto stand the test of time as one of Pakistan's most accomplished players across formats.
 
A.A.Z said:
Younis Khan was a much better ODI batsmen than his numbers suggest but after the oathgate revolt against his captaincy he was always in and out of the side and never the same force in ODI cricket as he had been prior to 2009.

Captaincy didn't affect his batting as he averaged a stunning 57.33 on his way to leading Pakistan to the 2009 World Cup. The team was turning into a real force under him with a lot of youngsters being brought to the fore and Pakistan performed pretty well in the 2009 Champions Trophy as well including an epic win against India.

But after the revolt against his captaincy coupled with several personal tragedies in his life including that of Bob Woolmer, who was a father figure for him, he wasn't the same player ever again not even in tests until a late career revival. Woolmer's death along with the demise of his brothers and nephews around the same time were the reason he didn't accept the captaincy after the 2007 World Cup when he had been groomed as the natural long term successor.

Most of his best performances came in and around the Woolmer era when Pakistan briefly became a team capable of chasing massive targets with Younis, Yousuf and Inzi forming Pakistan's strongest middle order since the 1970's.

Some of his best chasing knocks include:

56 not out in Melbourne against an ATG Australia. Man of the Match. (2002)

71 not out in the inaugural game in Abu Dhabi against India. Man of the Match. (2006)

101 in Southampton against England. Man of the Match. (2006)

117 in Mohali against India. Man of the Match. (2007)

123 not out in Karachi against India. Man of the Match. (2008)

73 in Dubai against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2010)

Some of his best knocks setting a target when batting first include:

93 in Durban against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2007)

108 in Dhaka against India in a final. Man of the Match. (2008)

101 in Abu Dhabi against West Indies with a rampant Gayle and Sarwan. Man of the Match. (2008)

72 in Colombo against finalists Sri Lanka in the 2011 World Cup. Best World Cup innings.

Most of these innings he played batting in the top order at number 3 when he was in fact a very accomplished batsmen in the finisher role batting at 6/7. He almost won Pakistan his first game on debut coming in at number 7 before getting run out on 46.

His 56 in Melbourne against an ATG Australia in 2002 to level the series is probably my favourite knock of his considering the conditions he was exposed to as a rookie. He came in at number 6 and took Pakistan to victory in a low scoring thriller with just 2 wickets remaining. It gave a glimpse into the ability of the man who would go onto become the greatest 4th innings batsmen of all time.

His numbers may have still been better had he cared more about his average than always trying to sneak in an extra run for the team's cause during the last ball of the innings and often sacrificing his wicket. Captaincy revolts, personal tragedies and even Pakistan not playing tests for an entire year in 2008 when he was at his peak were all obstacles he had to overcome but he went onto stand the test of time as one of Pakistan's most accomplished players across formats.
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POTW

Also, the 2002 half century against an ATG Australia team was also my favourite innings as well.

Misbah gets a lot of credit for his stats but he doesn't have one knock of note. He truly was the king of soft runs.
 
A.A.Z said:
Younis Khan was a much better ODI batsmen than his numbers suggest but after the oathgate revolt against his captaincy he was always in and out of the side and never the same force in ODI cricket as he had been prior to 2009.

Captaincy didn't affect his batting as he averaged a stunning 57.33 on his way to leading Pakistan to the 2009 World Cup. The team was turning into a real force under him with a lot of youngsters being brought to the fore and Pakistan performed pretty well in the 2009 Champions Trophy as well including an epic win against India.

But after the revolt against his captaincy coupled with several personal tragedies in his life including that of Bob Woolmer, who was a father figure for him, he wasn't the same player ever again not even in tests until a late career revival. Woolmer's death along with the demise of his brothers and nephews around the same time were the reason he didn't accept the captaincy after the 2007 World Cup when he had been groomed as the natural long term successor.

Most of his best performances came in and around the Woolmer era when Pakistan briefly became a team capable of chasing massive targets with Younis, Yousuf and Inzi forming Pakistan's strongest middle order since the 1970's.

Some of his best chasing knocks include:

56 not out in Melbourne against an ATG Australia. Man of the Match. (2002)

71 not out in the inaugural game in Abu Dhabi against India. Man of the Match. (2006)

101 in Southampton against England. Man of the Match. (2006)

117 in Mohali against India. Man of the Match. (2007)

123 not out in Karachi against India. Man of the Match. (2008)

73 in Dubai against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2010)

Some of his best knocks setting a target when batting first include:

93 in Durban against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2007)

108 in Dhaka against India in a final. Man of the Match. (2008)

101 in Abu Dhabi against West Indies with a rampant Gayle and Sarwan. Man of the Match. (2008)

72 in Colombo against finalists Sri Lanka in the 2011 World Cup. Best World Cup innings.

Most of these innings he played batting in the top order at number 3 when he was in fact a very accomplished batsmen in the finisher role batting at 6/7. He almost won Pakistan his first game on debut coming in at number 7 before getting run out on 46.

His 56 in Melbourne against an ATG Australia in 2002 to level the series is probably my favourite knock of his considering the conditions he was exposed to as a rookie. He came in at number 6 and took Pakistan to victory in a low scoring thriller with just 2 wickets remaining. It gave a glimpse into the ability of the man who would go onto become the greatest 4th innings batsmen of all time.

His numbers may have still been better had he cared more about his average than always trying to sneak in an extra run for the team's cause during the last ball of the innings and often sacrificing his wicket. Captaincy revolts, personal tragedies and even Pakistan not playing tests for an entire year in 2008 when he was at his peak were all obstacles he had to overcome but he went onto stand the test of time as one of Pakistan's most accomplished players across formats.
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[MENTION=93712]MenInG[/MENTION] We have a contender for POTW.

Very well written. Nice read.
 
I remember Younis Khan playing a great ODI knock against Australia in Australia. Pakistan won that series 2-1. That was the last time Pakistan won a series in Australia (back in 2002 or something).
 
A.A.Z said:
Younis Khan was a much better ODI batsmen than his numbers suggest but after the oathgate revolt against his captaincy he was always in and out of the side and never the same force in ODI cricket as he had been prior to 2009.

Captaincy didn't affect his batting as he averaged a stunning 57.33 on his way to leading Pakistan to the 2009 World Cup. The team was turning into a real force under him with a lot of youngsters being brought to the fore and Pakistan performed pretty well in the 2009 Champions Trophy as well including an epic win against India.

But after the revolt against his captaincy coupled with several personal tragedies in his life including that of Bob Woolmer, who was a father figure for him, he wasn't the same player ever again not even in tests until a late career revival. Woolmer's death along with the demise of his brothers and nephews around the same time were the reason he didn't accept the captaincy after the 2007 World Cup when he had been groomed as the natural long term successor.

Most of his best performances came in and around the Woolmer era when Pakistan briefly became a team capable of chasing massive targets with Younis, Yousuf and Inzi forming Pakistan's strongest middle order since the 1970's.

Some of his best chasing knocks include:

56 not out in Melbourne against an ATG Australia. Man of the Match. (2002)

71 not out in the inaugural game in Abu Dhabi against India. Man of the Match. (2006)

101 in Southampton against England. Man of the Match. (2006)

117 in Mohali against India. Man of the Match. (2007)

123 not out in Karachi against India. Man of the Match. (2008)

73 in Dubai against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2010)

Some of his best knocks setting a target when batting first include:

93 in Durban against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2007)

108 in Dhaka against India in a final. Man of the Match. (2008)

101 in Abu Dhabi against West Indies with a rampant Gayle and Sarwan. Man of the Match. (2008)

72 in Colombo against finalists Sri Lanka in the 2011 World Cup. Best World Cup innings.

Most of these innings he played batting in the top order at number 3 when he was in fact a very accomplished batsmen in the finisher role batting at 6/7. He almost won Pakistan his first game on debut coming in at number 7 before getting run out on 46.

His 56 in Melbourne against an ATG Australia in 2002 to level the series is probably my favourite knock of his considering the conditions he was exposed to as a rookie. He came in at number 6 and took Pakistan to victory in a low scoring thriller with just 2 wickets remaining. It gave a glimpse into the ability of the man who would go onto become the greatest 4th innings batsmen of all time.

His numbers may have still been better had he cared more about his average than always trying to sneak in an extra run for the team's cause during the last ball of the innings and often sacrificing his wicket. Captaincy revolts, personal tragedies and even Pakistan not playing tests for an entire year in 2008 when he was at his peak were all obstacles he had to overcome but he went onto stand the test of time as one of Pakistan's most accomplished players across formats.
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POTW. Superbly written. Great read.

Younis may have his off field issues but his contributions to Pakistan cricket are undeniable.

I've been a lurker on Pakpassion for many years but this post made register on here just so I could applaud this post.

It's absolutely outstanding!
 
MenInG said:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OnThisDay?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OnThisDay</a> in 2008. Chasing a score of 308/7, Pakistan easily beat India by 8 wickets in a ODI in Karachi. Younis Khan and Misbah-Ul-Haq shared an unbroken 144-run partnership, with Younis finishing on 123* and Misbah 70* <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cricket</a> <a href="https://t.co/dcok3N9HFp">pic.twitter.com/dcok3N9HFp</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/1278638743826636803?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 2, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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Outstanding innings, he had a habit of bullying the Idnians
 
A.A.Z said:
Younis Khan was a much better ODI batsmen than his numbers suggest but after the oathgate revolt against his captaincy he was always in and out of the side and never the same force in ODI cricket as he had been prior to 2009.

Captaincy didn't affect his batting as he averaged a stunning 57.33 on his way to leading Pakistan to the 2009 World Cup. The team was turning into a real force under him with a lot of youngsters being brought to the fore and Pakistan performed pretty well in the 2009 Champions Trophy as well including an epic win against India.

But after the revolt against his captaincy coupled with several personal tragedies in his life including that of Bob Woolmer, who was a father figure for him, he wasn't the same player ever again not even in tests until a late career revival. Woolmer's death along with the demise of his brothers and nephews around the same time were the reason he didn't accept the captaincy after the 2007 World Cup when he had been groomed as the natural long term successor.

Most of his best performances came in and around the Woolmer era when Pakistan briefly became a team capable of chasing massive targets with Younis, Yousuf and Inzi forming Pakistan's strongest middle order since the 1970's.

Some of his best chasing knocks include:

56 not out in Melbourne against an ATG Australia. Man of the Match. (2002)

71 not out in the inaugural game in Abu Dhabi against India. Man of the Match. (2006)

101 in Southampton against England. Man of the Match. (2006)

117 in Mohali against India. Man of the Match. (2007)

123 not out in Karachi against India. Man of the Match. (2008)

73 in Dubai against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2010)

Some of his best knocks setting a target when batting first include:

93 in Durban against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2007)

108 in Dhaka against India in a final. Man of the Match. (2008)

101 in Abu Dhabi against West Indies with a rampant Gayle and Sarwan. Man of the Match. (2008)

72 in Colombo against finalists Sri Lanka in the 2011 World Cup. Best World Cup innings.

Most of these innings he played batting in the top order at number 3 when he was in fact a very accomplished batsmen in the finisher role batting at 6/7. He almost won Pakistan his first game on debut coming in at number 7 before getting run out on 46.

His 56 in Melbourne against an ATG Australia in 2002 to level the series is probably my favourite knock of his considering the conditions he was exposed to as a rookie. He came in at number 6 and took Pakistan to victory in a low scoring thriller with just 2 wickets remaining. It gave a glimpse into the ability of the man who would go onto become the greatest 4th innings batsmen of all time.

His numbers may have still been better had he cared more about his average than always trying to sneak in an extra run for the team's cause during the last ball of the innings and often sacrificing his wicket. Captaincy revolts, personal tragedies and even Pakistan not playing tests for an entire year in 2008 when he was at his peak were all obstacles he had to overcome but he went onto stand the test of time as one of Pakistan's most accomplished players across formats.
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POTW [MENTION=93712]MenInG[/MENTION], a very enjoyable read.

While not everything went his way, you just feel he vastly under performed in ODI's. Speaking of the limited forms, we forget he had an excellent tournament as a solid middle order Batsman in the 2009 T20 World Cup.
 
A.A.Z said:
Younis Khan was a much better ODI batsmen than his numbers suggest but after the oathgate revolt against his captaincy he was always in and out of the side and never the same force in ODI cricket as he had been prior to 2009.

Captaincy didn't affect his batting as he averaged a stunning 57.33 on his way to leading Pakistan to the 2009 World Cup. The team was turning into a real force under him with a lot of youngsters being brought to the fore and Pakistan performed pretty well in the 2009 Champions Trophy as well including an epic win against India.

But after the revolt against his captaincy coupled with several personal tragedies in his life including that of Bob Woolmer, who was a father figure for him, he wasn't the same player ever again not even in tests until a late career revival. Woolmer's death along with the demise of his brothers and nephews around the same time were the reason he didn't accept the captaincy after the 2007 World Cup when he had been groomed as the natural long term successor.

Most of his best performances came in and around the Woolmer era when Pakistan briefly became a team capable of chasing massive targets with Younis, Yousuf and Inzi forming Pakistan's strongest middle order since the 1970's.

Some of his best chasing knocks include:

56 not out in Melbourne against an ATG Australia. Man of the Match. (2002)

71 not out in the inaugural game in Abu Dhabi against India. Man of the Match. (2006)

101 in Southampton against England. Man of the Match. (2006)

117 in Mohali against India. Man of the Match. (2007)

123 not out in Karachi against India. Man of the Match. (2008)

73 in Dubai against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2010)

Some of his best knocks setting a target when batting first include:

93 in Durban against an ATG South Africa. Man of the Match. (2007)

108 in Dhaka against India in a final. Man of the Match. (2008)

101 in Abu Dhabi against West Indies with a rampant Gayle and Sarwan. Man of the Match. (2008)

72 in Colombo against finalists Sri Lanka in the 2011 World Cup. Best World Cup innings.

Most of these innings he played batting in the top order at number 3 when he was in fact a very accomplished batsmen in the finisher role batting at 6/7. He almost won Pakistan his first game on debut coming in at number 7 before getting run out on 46.

His 56 in Melbourne against an ATG Australia in 2002 to level the series is probably my favourite knock of his considering the conditions he was exposed to as a rookie. He came in at number 6 and took Pakistan to victory in a low scoring thriller with just 2 wickets remaining. It gave a glimpse into the ability of the man who would go onto become the greatest 4th innings batsmen of all time.

His numbers may have still been better had he cared more about his average than always trying to sneak in an extra run for the team's cause during the last ball of the innings and often sacrificing his wicket. Captaincy revolts, personal tragedies and even Pakistan not playing tests for an entire year in 2008 when he was at his peak were all obstacles he had to overcome but he went onto stand the test of time as one of Pakistan's most accomplished players across formats.
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A solid post ruined by the silliest excuse. You would expect someone like Younis himself to say something like this to defend his mediocre ODI record.

The reason why Younis consistently failed in ODI cricket after 2008-2009 was because the ODI game evolved beyond his capabilities.

He was a good ODI player in the 2000’s, but the shift in ODI scores in the 2010s and the greater emphasis on power-hitting made him a clear weak-link. He got excessive chances until 2015 and couldn’t do anything.

He wasn’t getting out to sacrifice his wicket for the team cause but rather because he didn’t seem to have a clue on how to build a good ODI innings. He would consume way too many dot balls and didn’t have release shots.

The Mohali semifinal in 2011 should have been his last ODI and it confirmed that he was finished as a batsman in the format. He was completely clueless against the part-time spin of Yuvraj and sucked all momentum out of the run chase.
 
Mamoon said:
A solid post ruined by the silliest excuse. You would expect someone like Younis himself to say something like this to defend his mediocre ODI record.

The reason why Younis consistently failed in ODI cricket after 2008-2009 was because the ODI game evolved beyond his capabilities.

He was a good ODI player in the 2000’s, but the shift in ODI scores in the 2010s and the greater emphasis on power-hitting made him a clear weak-link. He got excessive chances until 2015 and couldn’t do anything.

He wasn’t getting out to sacrifice his wicket for the team cause but rather because he didn’t seem to have a clue on how to build a good ODI innings. He would consume way too many dot balls and didn’t have release shots.

The Mohali semifinal in 2011 should have been his last ODI and it confirmed that he was finished as a batsman in the format. He was completely clueless against the part-time spin of Yuvraj and sucked all momentum out of the run chase.
Click to expand...

It's not an excuse, it's an example to illustrate how batsmen from the 90's and early/mid 2000's didn't care for their averages or batting positions in limited overs cricket.

Some of Pakistan's highest successful run chases over 300 runs occurred during the 2000's with Younis playing a key role.

In Mohali (2007) his 117 at a SR over 106 anchored Pakistan's chase towards a score of 322 which was our highest successful chase at the time. This was made against India in India with Pakistan surrounded by a hostile crowd.

In Karachi (2008) his 123 not out at a SR over 105 saw Pakistan tear down the target of 309 in 45 overs against India.

There were also games in which he helped Pakistan put up big totals over 300 runs.

In Durban (2007) his 93 at a SR just under 95 helped Pakistan put up 351 against an ATG South African team. Pakistan won the game by a 141 runs and Younis was awarded the Man of the Match.

In Dhaka (2008) his 108 at a SR just over 109 against India in the Kitply Cup final saw Pakistan score 315 which they defended and Younis was once more Man of the Match.

If he could play these knocks before the captaincy revolt and the resulting indefinite ban which followed but then not even find a consistent spot in the ODI team afterwards it does bring into question politics within the team and the PCB.

Even in tests he wasn't the same batsmen until a late career revival in his final years from 2014 onwards.

In the 2011 World cup semi final Pakistan weren't chasing a massive score and an off-peak Younis and Misbah tried to play the anchor role and let everyone else bat around them which didn't work out.

Maybe he was outdated by then but that shouldn't diminish his prior performances in the format that's like saying Yuvraj's 2014 World T20 final or 2017 Champions Trophy final performances should make us discount his performance in the 2011 World Cup.

Look when you have a certain bias you may have complete conviction in your own argument and even facts can be distorted by putting things into a context which you may view with tinted glasses. Whatever I may say will not convince you otherwise since it doesn't suit your agenda which you've spent a lifetime pushing on this forum.

This retort may be completely futile as it will be disregarded, disparaged or dissected and torn down by you but I do hope at some level what I'm saying to you does make some sense to you.
 
A.A.Z said:
It's not an excuse, it's an example to illustrate how batsmen from the 90's and early/mid 2000's didn't care for their averages or batting positions in limited overs cricket.

Some of Pakistan's highest successful run chases over 300 runs occurred during the 2000's with Younis playing a key role.

In Mohali (2007) his 117 at a SR over 106 anchored Pakistan's chase towards a score of 322 which was our highest successful chase at the time. This was made against India in India with Pakistan surrounded by a hostile crowd.

In Karachi (2008) his 123 not out at a SR over 105 saw Pakistan tear down the target of 309 in 45 overs against India.

There were also games in which he helped Pakistan put up big totals over 300 runs.

In Durban (2007) his 93 at a SR just under 95 helped Pakistan put up 351 against an ATG South African team. Pakistan won the game by a 141 runs and Younis was awarded the Man of the Match.

In Dhaka (2008) his 108 at a SR just over 109 against India in the Kitply Cup final saw Pakistan score 315 which they defended and Younis was once more Man of the Match.

If he could play these knocks before the captaincy revolt and the resulting indefinite ban which followed but then not even find a consistent spot in the ODI team afterwards it does bring into question politics within the team and the PCB.

Even in tests he wasn't the same batsmen until a late career revival in his final years from 2014 onwards.

In the 2011 World cup semi final Pakistan weren't chasing a massive score and an off-peak Younis and Misbah tried to play the anchor role and let everyone else bat around them which didn't work out.

Maybe he was outdated by then but that shouldn't diminish his prior performances in the format that's like saying Yuvraj's 2014 World T20 final or 2017 Champions Trophy final performances should make us discount his performance in the 2011 World Cup.

Look when you have a certain bias you may have complete conviction in your own argument and even facts can be distorted by putting things into a context which you may view with tinted glasses. Whatever I may say will not convince you otherwise since it doesn't suit your agenda which you've spent a lifetime pushing on this forum.

This retort may be completely futile as it will be disregarded, disparaged or dissected and torn down by you but I do hope at some level what I'm saying to you does make some sense to you.
Click to expand...

Epic response!

People often overlook his test form from 2009 till 2013 when was going through a lot of off-field issues.
 
topspin said:
POTW

Also, the 2002 half century against an ATG Australia team was also my favourite innings as well.

Misbah gets a lot of credit for his stats but he doesn't have one knock of note. He truly was the king of soft runs.
Click to expand...

Thank you!

I believe Misbah's prime years were wasted and he was too old to display his full potential as a batsmen in his later years.

Advanced age coupled with the burden of captaincy his batting had sort of a siege mentality which rarely allowed him to exert himself onto the opposition.
 
A.A.Z said:
It's not an excuse, it's an example to illustrate how batsmen from the 90's and early/mid 2000's didn't care for their averages or batting positions in limited overs cricket.

Some of Pakistan's highest successful run chases over 300 runs occurred during the 2000's with Younis playing a key role.

In Mohali (2007) his 117 at a SR over 106 anchored Pakistan's chase towards a score of 322 which was our highest successful chase at the time. This was made against India in India with Pakistan surrounded by a hostile crowd.

In Karachi (2008) his 123 not out at a SR over 105 saw Pakistan tear down the target of 309 in 45 overs against India.

There were also games in which he helped Pakistan put up big totals over 300 runs.

In Durban (2007) his 93 at a SR just under 95 helped Pakistan put up 351 against an ATG South African team. Pakistan won the game by a 141 runs and Younis was awarded the Man of the Match.

In Dhaka (2008) his 108 at a SR just over 109 against India in the Kitply Cup final saw Pakistan score 315 which they defended and Younis was once more Man of the Match.

If he could play these knocks before the captaincy revolt and the resulting indefinite ban which followed but then not even find a consistent spot in the ODI team afterwards it does bring into question politics within the team and the PCB.

Even in tests he wasn't the same batsmen until a late career revival in his final years from 2014 onwards.

In the 2011 World cup semi final Pakistan weren't chasing a massive score and an off-peak Younis and Misbah tried to play the anchor role and let everyone else bat around them which didn't work out.

Maybe he was outdated by then but that shouldn't diminish his prior performances in the format that's like saying Yuvraj's 2014 World T20 final or 2017 Champions Trophy final performances should make us discount his performance in the 2011 World Cup.

Look when you have a certain bias you may have complete conviction in your own argument and even facts can be distorted by putting things into a context which you may view with tinted glasses. Whatever I may say will not convince you otherwise since it doesn't suit your agenda which you've spent a lifetime pushing on this forum.

This retort may be completely futile as it will be disregarded, disparaged or dissected and torn down by you but I do hope at some level what I'm saying to you does make some sense to you.
Click to expand...

Your emotional word salad has no substance but since you made an effort to type all of this, I will reply out of respect.

I don’t need to have an agenda to prove that a mediocre ODI batsman was mediocre.

The only agenda here is on your part because you have cherry-picked 6-7 innings in a career spanning 265 ODIs, conveniently forgetting that he has contributed to 100s of defeats.

You can blame the revolt of the players, the treatment of PCB, personal tragedies and anything under the sun, but the fact is that you cannot defend a batsman who averaged 29 with a strike rate of 72 in the top 3 after 129 matches.

That is a dreadful record irrespective of the fact that he played some excellent knocks in-between. If you look at the record of any cricketer who has played 250+ matches, you will find a dozen good performances. That doesn’t prove anything because what matters is consistency, and Younis was never a consistent ODI batsman.

The assertion that he didn’t care for his averages and played for the team is a completely baseless claim that you cannot back up with any facts or tangible evidence.

Averaging 29 at a poor strike rate is not called selfless batting; it is called awful batting, and that is what Younis produced for the vast majority of his ODI career.

He played more ODI matches than he deserved, he always bottled under World Cup pressure and he played the seniority card to force his way into the 2015 World Cup squad where he predictably embarrassed himself and then begged for a farewell ODI after the World Cup against England.

Your should sell your narrative that Younis is a saint who has been wronged by others to someone who would buy it.

Beneath the selfless team man act, Younis is a highly selfish and egoistic individual. The only selfless act that he has done in his career was retiring from T20s after the WT20 in 2009, although he reversed that decision temporarily later that year.

He left the team high and dry by refusing to take over as captain after the 2007 World Cup because he was ‘disturbed’ by Woolmer’s death. That selfish decision directly caused the chaos and drama that carried on until 2010 when Misbah took over as captain.

Had Younis accepted the captaincy after being groomed for over a year, Pakistan cricket would not have gone through the instability that it did between 2007 and 2009.

Furthermore, after getting over Woolmer by 2009 and accepting the captaincy, he managed to lose the dressing room within 9 months in spite for winning a trophy which is supposed to bond the team.

You can blame the players for the oath-gate, but there are always two sides to coin and two sides to a story - Younis is an unstable, emotional man with unpredictable behavior and can get offended at nothing. Thus it is not surprising to see someone like him lose the dressing room.

Wherever Younis goes, drama and controversy follow, and you cannot conveniently defend and justify Younis on all accounts.

The bottom-line is that a few good innings side, Younis had a forgettable ODI career and never found a way to consistently score in the format and bat at a high strike rate.

Unlike other accumulators of his era like Sangakkara, Amla and Clarke, he was unable to mold his game to the standards required in the ODI format.

He was one of the main reasons for Pakistan’s mediocrity in the format and why our batting consistently struggled. He hogged the number 3 position for over 120+ matches and couldn’t average beyond 30. He demonstrated why Pakistan continued to languish at 6th and 7th in the ODI rankings.

It is funny that you talk about agendas because only a person with a very strong agenda would write long emotional rants to defend Younis’ performance in ODIs.
 
Mamoon said:
Your emotional word salad has no substance but since you made an effort to type all of this, I will reply out of respect.

I don’t need to have an agenda to prove that a mediocre ODI batsman was mediocre.

The only agenda here is on your part because you have cherry-picked 6-7 innings in a career spanning 265 ODIs, conveniently forgetting that he has contributed to 100s of defeats.

You can blame the revolt of the players, the treatment of PCB, personal tragedies and anything under the sun, but the fact is that you cannot defend a batsman who averaged 29 with a strike rate of 72 in the top 3 after 129 matches.

That is a dreadful record irrespective of the fact that he played some excellent knocks in-between. If you look at the record of any cricketer who has played 250+ matches, you will find a dozen good performances. That doesn’t prove anything because what matters is consistency, and Younis was never a consistent ODI batsman.

The assertion that he didn’t care for his averages and played for the team is a completely baseless claim that you cannot back up with any facts or tangible evidence.

Averaging 29 at a poor strike rate is not called selfless batting; it is called awful batting, and that is what Younis produced for the vast majority of his ODI career.

He played more ODI matches than he deserved, he always bottled under World Cup pressure and he played the seniority card to force his way into the 2015 World Cup squad where he predictably embarrassed himself and then begged for a farewell ODI after the World Cup against England.

Your should sell your narrative that Younis is a saint who has been wronged by others to someone who would buy it.

Beneath the selfless team man act, Younis is a highly selfish and egoistic individual. The only selfless act that he has done in his career was retiring from T20s after the WT20 in 2009, although he reversed that decision temporarily later that year.

He left the team high and dry by refusing to take over as captain after the 2007 World Cup because he was ‘disturbed’ by Woolmer’s death. That selfish decision directly caused the chaos and drama that carried on until 2010 when Misbah took over as captain.

Had Younis accepted the captaincy after being groomed for over a year, Pakistan cricket would not have gone through the instability that it did between 2007 and 2009.

Furthermore, after getting over Woolmer by 2009 and accepting the captaincy, he managed to lose the dressing room within 9 months in spite for winning a trophy which is supposed to bond the team.

You can blame the players for the oath-gate, but there are always two sides to coin and two sides to a story - Younis is an unstable, emotional man with unpredictable behavior and can get offended at nothing. Thus it is not surprising to see someone like him lose the dressing room.

Wherever Younis goes, drama and controversy follow, and you cannot conveniently defend and justify Younis on all accounts.

The bottom-line is that a few good innings side, Younis had a forgettable ODI career and never found a way to consistently score in the format and bat at a high strike rate.

Unlike other accumulators of his era like Sangakkara, Amla and Clarke, he was unable to mold his game to the standards required in the ODI format.

He was one of the main reasons for Pakistan’s mediocrity in the format and why our batting consistently struggled. He hogged the number 3 position for over 120+ matches and couldn’t average beyond 30. He demonstrated why Pakistan continued to languish at 6th and 7th in the ODI rankings.

It is funny that you talk about agendas because only a person with a very strong agenda would write long emotional rants to defend Younis’ performance in ODIs.
Click to expand...

I appreciate the response but I don't have the same stamina as you to reply in kind to every post.

I barely post on the forum because of all the negativity and pessimism that certain posters bring on here, it's good to be grounded in reality but there's no point burying everything in the ground itself.

I'm no one to tell you anything but if you lightened up just a tad bit everyone would appreciate your posts and insights a lot more because at the moment they literally suck the life out of me and I think we have enough doom and gloom in the world.

Nevertheless, I respect your opinion but like I said I don't have the incredible ability you possess to be bothered to reply with emotional word salads and rants.
 
A.A.Z said:
I appreciate the response but I don't have the same stamina as you to reply in kind to every post.

I barely post on the forum because of all the negativity and pessimism that certain posters bring on here, it's good to be grounded in reality but there's no point burying everything in the ground itself.

I'm no one to tell you anything but if you lightened up just a tad bit everyone would appreciate your posts and insights a lot more because at the moment they literally suck the life out of me and I think we have enough doom and gloom in the world.

Nevertheless, I respect your opinion but like I said I don't have the incredible ability you possess to be bothered to reply with emotional word salads and rants.
Click to expand...

It is not a competition. There are no winners and losers here and as I a grow older, I am also losing the stamina to argue with people. I am no longer interested in being right or wrong. I just want to have my say and move on.

If you believe that Younis was a great ODI batsman and he averaged 29 after 120+ ODIs because of so and so reasons and not because of his own shortcomings, well good for you. I’m no one to convince you otherwise and change your mind.
 
shaz619 said:
POTW [MENTION=93712]MenInG[/MENTION], a very enjoyable read.

While not everything went his way, you just feel he vastly under performed in ODI's. Speaking of the limited forms, we forget he had an excellent tournament as a solid middle order Batsman in the 2009 T20 World Cup.
Click to expand...

Thank you!

He definitely under-achieved but was still a match-winner in his prime. Most tests runs and centuries for Pakistan as well as leading them to the 2009 T20 World Cup title. Barely any Pakistani players have achieved so much success across formats.
 
Mamoon said:
It is not a competition. There are no winners and losers here and as I a grow older, I am also losing the stamina to argue with people. I am no longer interested in being right or wrong. I just want to have my say and move on.

If you believe that Younis was a great ODI batsman and he averaged 29 after 120+ ODIs because of so and so reasons and not because of his own shortcomings, well good for you. I’m no one to convince you otherwise and change your mind.
Click to expand...

No I definitely agree he had a below par ODI career but I don't think we should use that to undermine his other achievements like so many on here do. He under-achieved in ODI's but he was still one of our key match-winners till 2009, even in high scoring games, and we shouldn't discount that for what came later.

Younis is a complicated character but he is also misunderstood and has been made into a caricature of himself on here. Unfortunately for him he never learnt to rob the nation and fix matches with a smile on his face while always saying the right things in order to be loved by the vast majority.
 
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