Senior selector Aaqib Javed of the Pakistan Cricket Board has accused the team management and dismissed Test captain Shan Masood for the persistent problems with game management and leadership, which is why Babar Azam was reinstated as captain in the longest format.
The former fast bowler for Pakistan went on to say that the captaincy move was not due to individual performances.
“The reason for bringing back Babar was that we noted that wherever we played… be it in Australia, South Africa, the West Indies or Bangladesh… we couldn’t dismiss the lower-order batters, even in different conditions with different bowlers, and this, to us, pointed towards issues in leadership and game management,” Aaqib said in a PCB podcast.
As Pakistan gears up for difficult Test tours of the West Indies and England, Aaqib, who is also the PCB’s director of high performance, thinks Babar is the best choice to offer long-term stability.
The former Test bowler stated that Babar would not be evaluated for the next two or three years and that the PCB will support him as Test captain as part of a long-term plan. According to Aaqib, Babar is still a vital member of the team and possesses sufficient maturity and expertise in cricket to guide the team effectively.
“Our plan is to give him a two- to three-year run as captain. Every captain brings a fresh mindset, and we expect him to inspire the team through his own performances.”
Between 2020 and 2023, Babar led Pakistan in 20 Test matches, winning 10, losing six, and drawing four. He resigned as Test captain in 2023 after being informed he would not be leading the team in the white-ball formats.
Despite a strong start in Australia during the winter of 2023, where they had chances to win two Tests, Pakistan lost 12 of the 16 Tests under Shan Masood’s leadership.
On July 13, Pakistan are expected to leave for the West Indies. There, they will play a four-day warm-up match starting on July 18, followed by a two-Test series in Trinidad and Tobago from July 25 to 29 and August 2 to 6.
Pakistan will play a three-match Test series in England after the Caribbean tour. The first Test will take place from August 19 to 23 at Headingley in Leeds.
