'Woolmer would have taken Pak cricket to great heights'

IMAGE: Younis said Woolmer had mentally prepared him to lead Pakistan for a long period in all formats after the World Cup. Photograph: ICC / X

Pakistan's highest Test run-getter and former captain, Younis Khan has said that had Bob Woolmer, the late national head coach, been alive the country's cricket would have reached great heights.

Woolmer was found dead in his hotel room in Jamaica a few hours after Pakistan's loss to Ireland and subsequent elimination from the 2007 Cricket World Cup. "I have no doubt that if Woolmer had remained head coach, Pakistan cricket would have been very different today, and he would have taken it to great heights," said Younis.

Younis, who was a member of the squad in 2007, also indirectly expressed disappointment at the lack of support the players got from their authorities when they were under investigation following Woolmer's death.

"I was very close to Bob (Woolmer) and it was our daily routine to sit down together after a match or nets to discuss cricket. Unfortunately the night he passed away, we didn't sit together as we had lost to Ireland.

"I was also out for a duck and was very upset with myself. So, I went to my room and locked myself in. Next day, I didn't see him at breakfast and later we learnt about his death," Younis said on a Pakistani TV channel.

Younis added that Woolmer's death and the stress the players had to undergo in the West Indies changed his mind about captaining Pakistan on a long-term basis.

Woolmer's death was later ruled due to natural causes after the Pakistan Cricket Board and the government sent their own security officials to the Caribbean to work with the Jamaican police.

Younis said Woolmer had mentally prepared him to lead Pakistan for a long period in all formats after the World Cup.

"After what all happened in the World Cup, I changed my mind and I became a reluctant captain and had no long-term tenure in mind."

Younis said that after Woolmer's death, the players were moved to another island where they were questioned for three days by the local police.

"It was like a torture for us there. While I fully understand the responsibilities a player has to show as an ambassador of his country, it should be the other way round... authorities must also look after us," he added.