Istafa Ali
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has chosen to re-appoint Babar Azam as T20 captain, even though the newly formed selection committee wanted to change the captain. Babar would be in charge of the upcoming five-match T20 series against New Zealand.
After the team lost the ICC World Cup 2023, Zaka Ashraf, who was in charge of the PCB, made Shaheen Shah Afridi leader of the white-ball team. The former management put Shan Masood in charge of the red ball.
Sources say that the selection committee told PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi unanimously that Babar Azam should be leader of the T20 cricket team. The 29-year-old will also be captain at the Kakul training camp.
Shaheen was thinking about stepping down as T20I captain after the news came out. Some people close to the pacer told him not to, though, because the cricket board is in charge of choosing the captain, and he should accept whatever decision they make.
After a terrible World Cup, Babar quit as captain of the national team in all formats, finishing a long time in which he was in charge. This happened in November of last year.
People were mad at the former captain for a few months after Pakistan didn’t do well in the Asia Cup and carried that bad form into the World Cup, where they lost before making it to the semifinals.
Babar was named white-ball captain in 2019 and Test captain in 2020, but the Green Shirts haven’t won an ICC or Asia Cup title while he’s been in charge.
Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillespie are expected to be on the coaching staff
Sources say that the cricket body has chosen to hire separate coaches for white-ball and red-ball cricket and that the process of hiring them has reached its final stages.
Sources say that Gary Kirsten, a coach from South Africa, will likely be hired for white-ball cricket and Jason Gillespie, a coach from Australia, will likely be hired for red-ball cricket.
Sources say that talks with both coaches are still going on about a range of topics, such as sports staff and domestic coaches. They also said that Gillespie might take over the duties when Kirsten has other things to do.
