Younis Khan recalls a helpful advice from Mohammad Azharuddin

Although the fans prefer the rivalry, cricketers of India and Pakistan are known to harbour respect for each other and even come to the other’s rescue at the time of need. Former Pakistan batsman Younis Khan shared such an instance at the Salaam Cricket 2018 which was held in Dubai on Monday where legendary cricketers from Asia met.

Khan, who is the highest scorer for Pakistan in Tests with a tally of 10,099 runs in 118 games, revealed at the elite programme the moment when former Indian captain Mohammad Azharuddin gave him an advice which saw him scoring a double century in a Test match in England back in 2016. It was a complete change of form for the batsman who was struggling in the English conditions.

“Two years ago, when I was struggling, Azhar bhai gave me a piece advice and that helped me score 200 against England in my last Test. (Back then) I got a lot of criticism by the end of my career but Azhar bhai called me and told me that batsmen also use the crease and he asked me to try it in the nets. He did not force me into it but asked me to try and I did and that helped me,” Younis Khan, 40, was quoted as saying by India Today.

Azhar also recalls the help he received from another Pak great

Azharuddin was present at the conclave and there was a clear sign that the two former batsmen shared the mutual admiration. Khan also said on the occasion that he had been a fan of the former Indian batsman since his first tour against India in Sharjah.

“My first tour against India was in Sharjah and I have been following Azharuddin since then. We couldn’t play much after that but I have learnt a lot from him and even during my captaincy, I tried to learn from him,” Khan added.

Azhar, who played 99 Tests, also recalled a similar help that he had received from Pakistani batting great Zaheer Abbas. Praising Khan for putting his advice to work, Azharuddin said Abbas had advised him to change his grip after he hit a rough patch and was dropped for a Test in 1989. He said he saw the advice to be strange but accepted it nevertheless and got the results.

[interaction id=”5b9f6a12d6d3b0668de7649b”]

Keep following CricTracker for more news and updates.