Save Pakistan cricket,appeals skipper Younis

With Pakistan’s status as a cricketing host under threat,captain Younis Khan has appealed to the world to not isolate the country. “I appeal to all the bosses and the ICC not to let cricket die here,” Younis told Cricinfo website on Thursday. “They must think about all the factors,including what will become of the youngsters of Pakistan. It would be very easy right now for the ICC and the bosses to say there will be no cricket in Pakistan. But the future will not be good if cricket is taken away from my country.”

Younis said that without sport’s corrective influence,the youth of the nation might be attracted to other detrimental options. “Our future as a nation is in our youngsters’ hands. Sport helps to make good human beings. If sport is not there,children can do silly things. We have to be very careful about that. Nobody wants to see children going down a bad path and finding themselves involved with bombs and things like that. We all must do something to stop that from happening.”

Younis insisted that watching icons at close quarters was important in the development of sport and future sportspersons. “Maybe in the future we will be alone (as a cricketing nation) and that would be very sad,especially for the youngsters. When I was a boy,I loved watching Imran Khan,Javed Miandad and Wasim Akram playing against great teams. It is because of them — seeing them play — that I also played the game. But what if no one comes to Pakistan? How will the youngsters know about the game? What will they do?”

Younis also worried about the future of the national team if there was a lack of opportunity to play at international level. “If something is not done quickly,maybe everyone goes to the IPL,ICL or county cricket. I hope that does not happen. It is up to the ICC and the bosses from around the world to make sure that cricket is not lost in Pakistan because of a couple of mad people. It is not the sportspersons’ fault.”