Mohammad Yousuf Appointed Pakistan Junior Team Head Coach

On a spree of making new appointments, the Pakistan Cricket Board on Saturday named former captain Mohammad Yousuf as the head coach of the national U-19 team ahead of the Asia Cup and the World Cup early next year. Yousuf's appointment comes a day after PCB elevated the former fast bowler Sohail Tanvir as the head of the junior selection committee. Among its slew of actions taken in recent days following Pakistan's first-round exit from the World Cup in India, the PCB had also announced the appointment of former pacer Wahab Riaz as the chief selector of the national selection committee.

Mohammad Hafeez, who had recently resigned as one of the members of the technical committee, has not only been named the director of cricket (men's team) but is also expected to double up as the coach during the team's upcoming tours of Australia and New Zealand.

Yousuf, who has previously served as batting coach of the Pakistan team and also at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore, is ranked as one of Pakistan's top batters, with 7,530 Test runs and 9,720 in ODIs in a career spanning from 1998 to 2010.

With 1,788 runs in 11 Tests at 99.33 (9x100s, 3x50s), Yousuf also holds the record of scoring most runs in a calender year. He achieved the fear in 2006.

“Having had the privilege of working with the senior men's side, I will bring my coaching experience to the U19 set-up, providing a nurturing environment for the young talents to thrive and make a mark on the international level,” Yousuf said in a PCB statement.

Yousuf said he had agreed to become the junior team head coach since it was important to identify young talent and groom and harness them for the senior team.

A reliable source in the PCB also confirmed that former fast bowler Umar Gul would also be named as the new bowling coach of the senior team going to Australia and New Zealand.

“Hafeez will also be batting coach of the senior side, while senior bureaucrat Naved Akram Cheema is going to be appointed as the new manager of the team, with Mansoor Rana as the operational manager of the side,” the source said.

These announcements will be made after board's managing committee chairman Zaka Ashraf returns from India on Monday after attending the International Cricket Council (ICC) meeting and World Cup final in Ahmedabad.

from NDTV Sports-Cricket
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