Karachi, Jan 24

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ijaz Butt's statement that the country's cricket team will have a new captain after their ongoing tour of Australia came in for severe criticism Sunday from three former captains.

Aamer Sohail, Moin Khan and Inzamamul Haq felt Butt's statement was ill-timed as it came when Yousuf was trying to revive the sagging morale of the side and it implied that Yousuf would not be the captain after the series against Australia.

Sohail, Moin and Inzamam felt that even if the Pakistan Cricket Board wanted Yousuf to go, it should have waited for the team to return from Down Under instead of airing its views in the middle of the series.

Butt Friday announced that Yousuf was appointed only till the end of the Australia tour and a new captain would take over after the series. He also stated that batting and fielding coaches would be appointed.

Sohail said Butt's statement would only demoralise Yousuf and a weakened captain could not motivate a side.

Inzamam said the board should not have gone public with the statement as it would lead to chaos and confusion among the players.

"In fact, the communication between the team management, selectors and the board has broken down and Butt's statement has worsened the situation," said Inzamam.

Moin said though Yousuf's captaincy has been lackluster, the board's stand had only complicated matters.

"Remember, he accepted captaincy when no one was willing to take up the job and tried his best, though he has never been an aggressive person to be daring on the field. But that does not mean you tell the players midway through the series that they will have a new captain after it," he said.

The PCB will have a tough time choosing a new Test captain as Younis Khan is disinclined to take up the assignment after he quit in the wake of allegations of match-fixing during the Champions Trophy.

Pakistan are to play nine Tests this year against top teams like Australia, England and South Africa.