Batsman Mohammad Yousuf Thursday spoke up for the rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) players whom the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) continues to shun despite a court order lifting a ban on them, hoping the people would help them get their due.
"We have always received enormous support from the public and now I hope that the people will come out and protest to help us get our rights," said Yousuf, who joined the ICL last November.
Nineteen Pakistani cricketers, among them all-rounder Abdul Razzaq, former skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Mohammad Sami are banned from all forms of cricket by PCB on joining the rebel cricket league.
Earlier this week, the Sindh High Court (SHC) suspended the ban on ICL cricketers from featuring in domestic tournaments.
Yousuf hailed the SHC decision and hoped it would finally clear the way for him and other ICL-associated cricketers to return to the national team.
The Lahore-based batsman, meanwhile, backed the PCB's decision to appoint middle-order batsman Younis Khan as the new captain in place of Shoaib Malik.
"Younis deserves to be the captain," said Yousuf. "He was always the right candidate for captaincy. The board made a big mistake by making Malik the captain," he maintained.
{{/usCountry}}"Younis deserves to be the captain," said Yousuf. "He was always the right candidate for captaincy. The board made a big mistake by making Malik the captain," he maintained.
{{/usCountry}}"Under Malik, Pakistan cricket went backwards. But I'm hopeful that Younis will unite the team and get the best out of it," he added.