Do not chide young players unnecessarily: Younis

Karachi: Former Pakistan captain Younis Khan has urged the media and the former players to refrain from criticising the youngsters unnecessarily, saying it severely "dents their confidence".

Younis, who is leading Abbotabad Falcons in the ongoing National T20 Championship, is not pleased with critical comments made by the commentators and media on the performance of some players in the ongoing competition. Younis` team has a number of young players and the criticism was directed at some of his players after they lost close matches to Lahore Eagles and Karachi Zebras. "If they harshly criticise the senior players, it is okay because we are now accustomed to this and adjust accordingly and perform as well. But I would request the media and commentators and experts to be careful while talking about the younger players as they take criticism to heart and lost focus and this upsets their careers," Younis said. "I appreciate that the media and commentators and experts have a big role to play in cricket and in a big event like this but they must give some leeway to the younger players who are still inexperienced and learning to cope with the pressure of top cricket. Criticism dents their confidence completely." It is after a long time that Younis spoke in detail in the media as his comments came at the prize distribution ceremony after his team`s defeat against Karachi. "I want to see these young players come up in Pakistan cricket and do well. They need such opportunities to get exposure at this stage where matches are being televised live so the media and commentators must understand they are new and will take time to adjust to this pressure," he said. Younis also called on the PCB to organise a national T20 event after every six months as it allows regional teams to field youngsters and gel together. PTI