New Delhi: It was perhaps a momentary lapse on the part of Younis Khan, but it was enough to understand what the Pakistan captain was going through at the moment.

For the full one hour when the Pakistan captain came to talk to the media on Monday, Younis was able to present a smiling face except for a moment when he was asked how difficult it would be for him to lead the side in the Champions Trophy.

“Cricket has never come easy to me,” Younis’ eyes flared for a moment. “As a batsman, when dropped, I don’t come back to the team the easily,” he said, and then controlled himself to flash a grin.

“I mostly laugh at the situations when they decide to drop me. I come up with a hundred and all plans are shelved. As a captain also things are the same. The tournament is difficult, the opposition strong. Nothing will be easy.”

The Pakistan captain, who was the main character of a 72-hour drama when he refused captaincy and took it back again, did not take much time to get back into his shell. “This time I may not face much problem as the boys are solidly behind me.

“You can go and ask all the players, including Yousuf,” he said. “We are a united lot.”

Mohammed Yousuf was talking to another group of mediamen in another table a few yards away. He, too, made the point that everything was fine with the team.

“I have forgotten about the subject totally,” was his first reaction.

“Only you people have reminded me about it. What has happened is past. We should look forward to brighter things at the moment. God willing, I will become a captain again. That’s not a big issue to me.”