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KARACHI Habib Bank received a huge fillip ahead of the RBS Quaid-i-Azam Trophy National Cricket Championship final against Karachi Blues, starting at the National Stadium here on Monday, with the news that star Pakistan batsman Younis Khan is a definite starter.
Younis was a notable absentee from the bankers' practice session on Sunday but according to team coach Liaquat Ali, the former Pakistan skipper will play after having publicly declared his availability for the all-important fixture during a press conference in Lahore on Friday.
'This indeed is great news for us. Younis will play tomorrow despite missing the practice this afternoon. Having a cricketer of his stature can only boost our confidence of winning our first Quaid Trophy after a very long time,' a beaming Liaquat, himself a former Test left-arm paceman, told Dawn on Sunday.
Younis has not played at all since leading Pakistan in the three-match ODI series against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi and skipped the Test trip to New Zealand at his personal request. Subsequently he remained untraceable and was not selected in the Test squad for Australia after failing to play in the premier domestic championship.
It was only last week that Younis made a public appearance in Lahore when he attended a five-day coaching course, conducted by the PCB at its National Cricket Academy. He is now hoping to be picked for the One-day International series in Australia.
Liaquat also confirmed that dashing all-rounder and Pakistan Twenty20 captain Shahid Afridi is unavailable for the final since he is attending to his ailing father.
He further said it would only be decided before the match as to who would lead the team.
Pakistan reject Hasan Raza has led Habib Bank throughout the preliminary round matches in the absence of appointed skipper Younis.
Meanwhile, Karachi Blues would be hoping to continue their impressive season despite having to play the final without their regular skipper and strike bowler Mohammad Sami who is due to leave for Australia in a day or two after called up as a reinforcement by the Pakistan touring team.
Opener Khalid Latif will skipper the regional side that includes two players who have played a vital role in steering them into the final. Upcoming Asad Shafiq is the leading batsman with 1,059 championship runs while the Kuwait-born paceman Tanvir Ahmed is easily the pick of the bowlers this season with 76 scalps under his belt.
Karachi, under different names, have annexed the prestigious title on no less than 18 times. The last time they won the championship was in the 2006-07 season when Karachi Urban, ironically led by Hasan Raza, defeated Sialkot by eight wickets in the final played in Multan.
Habib Bank, on the other hand, have been victorious just once when they completed an unprecedented treble way back in 1977-78.
Their last appearance in the final was two seasons ago when Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) clinched their maiden trophy on first innings lead after the final here was drawn.
Teams (from)
HABIB BANK Hasan Raza, Younis Khan, Taufiq Umar, Shan Masood, Saleem Elahi, Khaqan Arsal, Aftab Khan, Kamran Hussain, Humayun Farhat, Abdul Rehman, Aslam Qureshi, Fahad Masood, Irfan Fazil, Shahid Nazir, Imran Nazir Jr, Rehan Rafiq, Farhan Iqbal.
KARACHI BLUES Khalid Latif (captain), Shahzeb Hasan, Asad Shafiq, Ali Asad, Wajihuddin, Asim Kamal, Tariq Haroon, Javed Mansoor, Tanvir Ahmed, Khalid Mahmood, Azam Hussain, Shaharyar Ghani, Waqas Ausaf, Atif Maqbool, Fahad Khan, Faraz Ahmed, Mirza Adnan Baig.
Umpires Zameer Haider and Kaukab Butt.
TV umpire Iqbal Butt.
Match referee Anwer Khan.
