Pakistan's Younus Khan will not be captaining his country in the three-Test series in Australia, selectors announced Tuesday — because he did not make himself available.
Mohammad Yousuf will be retained as captain, even though Younus was appointed captain until the 2011 World Cup.
Younus pulled out of Pakistan's tour to New Zealand over lack of form and has since been out of contact. He did not play in any domestic match, a prerequisite for selection.
Chief selector Iqbal Qasim said Younus did not inform them about his availability.
“Younus did not play domestic matches nor did he make himself available for selection so we did not consider him,” Qasim said. Yousuf will also lead the team in the five-match one-day series that follows the Tests. Shahid Afridi, not in the Test squad, will lead the team in the one Twenty20 to be played after the one-day matches.
Younus, 32, took the decision to take a break from the game after Pakistan's 2-1 series loss to New Zealand in Abu Dhabi last month, also saying that “he had lost control over his team-mates.”