Pakistan batting coach Younis Khan and PCB part ways

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and batting coach Younis Khan have mutually agreed to part ways only six months after he accepted a two-year contract. He won't be travelling with the Pakistan team on their overseas tours of England and West Indies.

Both parties did not make any further comment on the reasons for Khan's departure. He was involved in the recently-concluded camp for the Test squad at the High Performance Centre only for a few days before he returned back to Karachi, Cricday understands.

Khan was appointed ahead of Pakistan's tour of England last year to join head coach Misbah ul Haq, bowling coach Waqar Younis and spin-bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed in the team management. That was also his first appointment with the PCB since his retirement in 2017.

Khan originally started as a batting consultant last year on a short-term stint. The PCB later integrated him into the coaching system as the batting coach for two years with an option to extend his contract for another term, till the 50-over World Cup in 2023. In addition to his role with the national team, Khan was also appointed to run the Batsmen Development Program at the Hanif Mohammad High Performance Centre in Karachi.

Pakistan had mixed results since he took over as batting coach. In five overseas Tests in England and New Zealand, Pakistan drew two and lost three before beating South Africa across formats at home and in the white-ball formats away, followed by a successful tour to Zimbabwe, which included series wins in the T20Is and Tests.

"It is sad to lose an expert of the stature and experience of Younis Khan," PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan said. "Following a series of discussions, we both have reluctantly but mutually and amicably agreed that it was time to move in different directions. I want to thank Younis Khan for his contributions during his short stint as the Pakistan men's national cricket team's batting coach and hope he will remain available to assist the PCB by sharing his vast knowledge with the emerging cricketers."

Younis had frayed relations with the PCB. Even his integration into the coaching set-up wasn't smooth after his retirement in 2017. He had turned down the PCB on two previous occasions before eventually accepting the job last year. The board had previously tried to rope him in to work at the development level at the NCA, but those talks fizzled out. Then, in May last year, Khan was close to taking up a role as the Pakistan's Under-19 coach but that plan, too, did not come to pass. One of the significant problems had to do with finances while the other was with the job profile. The PCB had initially proposed Khan's role as a mentor and coach but he wanted a wider role, including a say in national selection.