Former Pakistan wicketkeeper Rashid Latif claimed that former India captain Mohammed Azharuddin may have played a role in the Younis Khan-Grant Flower knife episode. Flower was Pakistan’s batting coach from 2014 to 2019 and had said recently that former captain Younis had once held a knife to his throat for offering him batting tips.
“We do not know what happens in the dressing room. Azharuddin can be a reason for this,” said Latif in a the chat show ‘Caught Behind’ on Youtube.
“In 2016, Younis made a double century at the Oval. He (Younis) did not take the name of the batting coach (Grant Flower). He said that I was struggling and talked to Azharuddin.
“That is a big factor that a player is opting for someone else rather than the coach. Flower must have done some things as batting coach and has served Pakistan. I think this Azharuddin factor must have been somewhere in his (Flower’s) mind.”
Flower had said during a conversation with brother Andy and host Neil Manthorp on the ‘Following On Cricket Podcast’ for talkSPORT that it was coach Mickey Arthur who had to eventually intervene. Arthur himself later confirmed the incident while refusing to go into details.
“If I say something, people I know try to justify it. It is not Mickey Arthur’s fault,” said Latif. “The real focus should be the person who asked these questions and is still behind the scenes. It could also be an organization behind the whole thing. That is a possibility. If Younis came on because of a higher authority, he would not have come as a batting coach working under Misbah-ul-Haq. He would have been in a much more influential position,” he said.