Pakistan dump Shaheen Afridi as skipper two months ahead of T20 World Cup 2024; New skipper appointed
Pakistan’s promising batter Babar Azam has been re-appointed as the Whiteball captain for the Pakistan cricket team.
Pakistan’s promising batter Babar Azam has been re-appointed as the Whiteball captain for the Pakistan cricket team. Babar was previously appointed as the captain of all the three formats in 2019 and after the team’s poor campaign in the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 in India the cricketer resigned from captaincy and stepped down as the skipper of all the three formats.
The Pakistan cricket board appointed the team’s ace pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi as the captain of the T20Is however after repeated failures, the board has invited back Azam to lead the Pakistan team once again ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 which will be conducted in West Indies and USA.
While making the grand announcement of repointing the skipper, The Pakistan cricket board shared the official news on their social media account.
Babar Azam appointed as white-ball captain
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) March 31, 2024
Following unanimous recommendation from the PCB’s selection committee, Chairman PCB Mohsin Naqvi has appointed Babar Azam as white-ball (ODI and T20I) captain of the Pakistan men's cricket team. pic.twitter.com/ad4KLJYRMK
The Board in the statement stated, “Babar Azam appointed as white-ball captain. Following unanimous recommendation from the PCB's selection committee, Chairman PCB Mohsin Naqvi has appointed Babar Azam as white-ball (ODI and T20I) captain of the Pakistan men's cricket team."
Shaheen Afridi unhappy with PCB for being sacked as Pakistan captain
Recently a closed source of the PCB claimed that the pacer is unhappy with the board’s decision of not communicating with him before replacing him as the T20 captain of Pakistan. The source also stated that Afridi was happy to step down rather than getting sacked from captaincy.
"Shaheen is rightly upset as being the national T20 captain he expected that even if the board selectors wanted to remove him they have the decency to also inform him for the reasons behind this and keep him in the loop about everything," a close source said.
Pakistan never announced an official ODI captain after Babar Azam stepped down from the position, however in his absence, Shaan Masood continued to lead the team as the red ball captain, and is expected to continue his reign under the chairmanship of Mohsin Naqvi.
Babar Azam was brutally criticized for the team’s over performances in the ODI World Cup which prompted him to resign and step down from captaincy. However, ahead of the new challenge of T20 World Cup 2024, the stalwart will once again wear the captaincy cap for Pakistan.