Beating SL better than England and India, says Younis

You would be forgiven for thinking that beating England and India in succession would be among any Pakistan cricketer's most cherished achievements but not Younis Khan. Writing on Bigstarcricket.com recently, Younis rated the recent Test and ODI series win over Sri Lanka as the best of Pakistan's recent wins, including those at home against England and India.

"I think this latest victory against Sri Lanka at Kandy is the best of the lot in my opinion because, to win a one-day and Test series in Sri Lanka is a great achievement. The win at Kandy was huge and better than those over England and India for a variety of reasons.

"I say this because after nearly losing the first Test, it required a lot of character for us to come back in Kandy but that's exactly what we did and even there, we were 109 runs behind after the first innings. The bowling of [Mohammad] Asif and [Abdul] Razzaq really got us back into the match. They bowled tremendously well. Not just that but everybody was saying that the pitches were dodgy and some also questioned Pakistan's batsmen, so with all that in mind it was a satisfying win," Younis explained.

Younis also revealed that his vital 73 not out, which marshaled the run-chase in Kandy, was inspired in part by Damien Martyn's gritty, matchwinning century against South Africa in the third Test in Johannesburg. "I was happy to score 73 not out to help us over the finishing line. In fact, the night before, I was sitting in my hotel room watching Damien Martyn batting against South Africa and I was inspired by how he grafted away for his team in a tight position. He ended up with a hundred and helped Australia win the match. It made me think that I should go about my innings like Martyn and play a good knock for my team. I'm a very big fan of Martyn's and of Rahul Dravid also. I think the three of us play in quite a similar way as we are all slow starters but can play our shots once we are set."

With an important tour to England looming in the summer, Younis insisted Pakistan were strongly placed to do well. "The teams start as 50-50 but if Shoaib Akhtar comes back as fit as he was against England before, and the signs are he will, I think it might tip the balance in our favour, 60-40. Why not? We already have a very balanced team and Shoaib will make a big difference when he comes back."

And as one of the few Pakistani batsmen in recent years with some county experience (he had a brief, largely unsuccessful stint with Nottinghamshire last year) Younis said he was keen to further his county experience before Pakistan's tour, revealing that three county teams including Lancashire had shown some interest in him. "It's too early to say yet whether anything will come of it, but I would welcome a two-month spell in county cricket before our tour of England. It would be good experience to get acclimatised to the English wickets after batting for six months on the slower-paced subcontinent pitches."