Younis says he continues enjoying captaincy

Pakistan captain Younis Khan has said he is enjoying leading the side despite the semi-final loss in the ICC Champions Trophy and insisted it had not affected his own performance on the field.

"I'm enjoying cricket," Younis said after reaching Karachi. "In fact all the boys are enjoying playing under my captaincy and that's a good thing."

Younis was first made captain in 2005 in the absence of Inzamam-ul-Haq but announced his resignation for the 2006 Champions Trophy, only to reverse it the next day and lead Pakistan to a first-round exit in the tournament. He was favourite to take over the captaincy following Pakistan's poor show in the 2007 World Cup but he turned it down, citing mental strain as the reason. However in January 2009, the board approached him again following a disastrous home series against Sri Lanka. This time Younis accepted and led Pakistan to a World Twenty20 title in England.

Younis said the Champions Trophy exit was bitterly disappointing as he had wanted to gift his country the trophy that had been shifted from Pakistan to South Africa because of security concerns. He said there were many reasons for the team's defeat to New Zealand, including his dropped catch, missed run-outs and poor umpiring but that finishing in the top four was a positive sign.

"I will regret dropping it for the rest of my life," Younis said. "Maybe the result could have been different had I not dropped that catch."

Allrounder Shahid Afridi felt luck had deserted Pakistan in the game against New Zealand but also said that they had made poor use of the Powerplays in the match. They scored only 35 in their batting Powerplay after taking it only in the 45th over and conceded 55 when New Zealand took theirs.