Cricket: Mohammad Yousuf vs Yousuf Youhana

Younis Khan has decided that life is too short, and the Pakistan vice-captaincy will do just fine.
Now that the queue of contenders for the honour is practically vacant, Mohammad Yousuf has surprised no one by making his own intentions plain. The artist formerly known as Yousuf Youhana converted from Christianity to Islam in 2005. That decision made it considerably easier for him to now become captain, although the Pakistan Cricket Board may look for a younger candidate.

Which is all well and good. But, more importantly, surely someone should look at whether Yousuf is a better player as a Christian or as a Muslim. And then draw all manner of inflammatory conclusions. Put simply, Yousuf's Test average as a Christian - 47 - is nothing compared to the 84 he boasts in his Islamic incarnation, if you'll excuse the unfortunate choice of words.

And that performance over the last 18 months includes a flurry of centuries and double centuries, and a world record for the most runs and centuries in a calendar year. If I'm not mistaken, I think it's the track Mathematics by Mos Def where the chorus includes the Fat Joe lyric - "It's simple mathematics." Then again, as Beat King never fails to remind me, look at how Q-Tip's career nosedived after he switched codes and adopted the name "Kamal Fareed". Perhaps this is an area that requires further investigation...