Younis Khan held a knife to my throat when I offered him batting advice: Flower

Pakistan’s former batting coach Grant Flower, while talking on the Following on Cricket Podcast, revealed that legendary batsman Younis Khan once held a knife to his throat when he offered him batting advice.

The 49-year-old claimed that Younis, who is currently the Men in Green’s batting coach, was tough to master despite being the highest scorer in the history of Pakistan Test cricket.

“Younis Khan… quite tough to master. Obviously, a brilliant career. I remember one incident in Brisbane, during the Test, at breakfast I tried to give him a bit of batting advice, not that my career was anywhere near his regarding stats, as he is the highest scorer in Pakistan Test cricket,” said Flower.

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“But he didn’t take kindly to my advice and brought a knife to my throat, with Mickey Arthur sitting alongside, who had to intervene. Yeah, it’s been interesting. But that’s part of coaching. It makes it a hell of a journey, and I’ve really enjoyed it. I’ve still got a lot to learn, but I’m very fortunate to be in the position I am,” he added.

Flower also stated that Pakistan’s opening batsman Ahmed Shehzad was a skillful yet rebellious cricketer.

“He [Shehzad] is a very skillful batter, but quite rebellious. Every team has got its rebel. Sometimes it makes them better players, sometimes maybe not so,” he said.

Flower served as Pakistan’s batting coach in a tenure that started in 2014 and ended in 2019. He oversaw the rise of various young batsmen such as Fakhar Zaman, Imamul Haq and the prolific Babar Azam.