The appointment of Shaheen Shah Afridi as the skipper of Pakistan in the shorter format of the game has sparked speculation about the involvement of Shahid Afridi in the decision-making process
Days after failing to lead Pakistan to the semifinals of the Cricket World Cup, Babar Azam has stepped down from his captaincy. The Pakistan Cricket Board wasted no time in responding to Babar's decision, swiftly appointing Shan Masood as the Test captain and Shaheen Shah Afridi as the T20I skipper.
The appointment of Shaheen Shah Afridi as the skipper of Pakistan in the shorter format of the game has sparked speculation about the involvement of Shahid Afridi in the decision-making process. It is worth noting that Shaheen is Shahid's son-in-law, having married Shahid Afridi's daughter, Ansha, earlier this year.
“Shaheen as captain is entirely Mohammad Hafeez’s and the PCB chairman’s decision. I have nothing to do with that. I never lobbied for Shaheen's captaincy. In fact, I have always wanted to keep Shaheen away from the captaincy,” Afridi was quoted as saying on Samaa TV.
Afridi also expressed his desire for Babar to remain in his leadership role.
“I was never in favour of Babar Azam's removal. I also told the PCB chairman that he should not remove Babar from the captaincy. I wanted Mohammad Rizwan to be the white-ball captain and Babar to be the captain of the Test team,” he further said.
Pakistan won four out of their nine games in the group stage, resulting in their elimination from the tournament. This marks the fifth time in the last six editions of the competition that the team has failed to qualify for the semifinals.
Babar had put out a statement days after Pakistan's World Cup exit to confirm his departure from captaincy role. "Today, I am stepping down as the captain of Pakistan in all formats," Babar had announced on X, formerly Twitter, after meeting PCB chief Zakar Ashraf in Lahore. In the same meeting, former captain Mohammad Hafeez was appointed as team director, replacing Mickey Arthur in the new set-up.
“It's a difficult decision but I feel it is the right time for this call. I will continue to represent Pakistan as a player in all three formats,” Babar had further said.
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 "Image Source: Twitter")
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