Team Neemopani
Former Pakistan captain Babar Azam is said to have been involved in an audio leak that has put Zaka Ashraf, Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Management Committee, in yet another scandal.
A voice that sounds like Ashraf’s can be heard talking to an unknown woman in the two-minute and fifteen-second audio clip. They are supposedly talking about the recent changes in the team’s leadership, specifically Babar’s appointment as captain.
This is not the first time that Babar and the PCB head have been in trouble. A conversation between the star batter and Salman Naseer, the board’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), was leaked and then shown on a private news station in October.
The chat showed text messages that the two sent and received. When asked about the rumors that the skipper was trying to call PCB Management Committee Chairman Zaka Ashraf and that the board’s head answered his calls, the skipper denied calling Ashraf.
The latest audio leak includes a conversation between three people, including the head of the PCB Management Committee and two other people who have not been named. They can be heard talking about national issues.
Much of the conversation took place between the woman and Ashraf. They talked about how friendships and players’ agents affect the team.
“We have seen how the captain prefers to play his close friends, there was no place for Shadab Khan [in the World Cup],” said the unidentified lady.
“Because of this, Pakistan cricket is getting worse,” Ashraf agreed.
In the recording, someone else who was not named said, “Hasan Ali also played because he was Babar’s friend.”
“No, Hasan played because Naseem Shah wasn’t there,” the woman said.
The head of the PCB then talked about a representative named Talha. He said that Talha is so close with eight players that he goes to their homes to get to know them.
“This guy’s name is Talha. He works as a player agent. He has been in charge of eight national team players. There are contracts between him and the players. Because he is so smart, he has become close with many of the players’ families by visiting their homes. The players can’t move without him. “Ashok Osmani, I don’t think I know what his name is,” Ashraf said.
He then said that he had offered Babar the position of Test cricket captain, but Babar said he had to listen to his family and call Talha instead.
“I told Babar that you should stay as Test captain, but I’m thinking about taking you off the white ball.” Babar answered, “Well, I’ll think about this some more at home, and then I’ll let you know what I decide.” “When Babar called Talha to talk, Talha told him to drop everything,” the PCB official said.
Then Ashraf said he had a “plan B” ready in case something like that happened. When Babar said he would step down across all forms, Ashraf called that person and said, “Chal bhai, ab tu captain hai.” “Come on, you’re the captain now.”
The woman, who was not identified, was confused, so she asked who the captain was, thinking it might be Shan Masood. Ashraf answered, “No, it is Shaheen Afridi,” and the woman then asked if Mohammad Rizwan wasn’t the best choice.
“I liked Rizwan a lot, but he was also with Babar and Talha,” the head of the PCB said.
The woman then said, “But Shaheen is controlled by Shahid Afridi, his father-in-law, and he gets in the way a lot.” The person sitting there who wasn’t known replied, “This much interference is very common.”
