T20 World Cup 2024: Babar Azam reappointed as Pakistan's white-ball captain ahead of the showpiece

Babar Azam (Pic: File Pic)

Star batsman Babar Azam has been reappointed as Pakistan's white-ball captain ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024. The right-handed batsman replaced Shaheen Shah Afridi as the T20 captain. The speedster was snubbed from the leadership role after just one series loss against New Zealand in January.

The decision to hand over the captaincy to Azam was taken by Pakistan Cricket Board's selection committee.

"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," the PCB said in a media release.

During the meeting with PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi Babar insisted on handing him the Test captaincy as well.

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A reliable source from PCB disclosed that Naqvi said that Babar would be given a proper run in white ball and the leadership role in then longest format of the game will be discussed later.

Shan Masood is currently in charge of the Test team. "Naqvi made it clear to Babar that PCB will decide on the Test captaincy after appointing the red ball foreign coach and Pakistan has no Test commitments until after the World Cup," the source added.

Babar Azam decided to give up on captaincy after a poor run in the ODI World Cup 2023 in India, last year.

He had relinquished his role after the then PCB Chief Zaka Ashraf told him he would no longer be captain the white-ball formats and would only lead the Test team.

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Under the leadership of Azam, Pakistan reach the final of the T20 World Cup 2022. The upcoming T20 World Cup 2024 will begin on June 1 in the West Indies and the USA.

The source said the announcement was made after selectors Muhammad Yousuf, Asad Shafiq, Wahab Riaz, Abdul Razzaq and Bilal Afzal met with Shaheen in the training camp in Kakul on Saturday evening and informed him that they wanted him to focus on his bowling and felt it was better if a batter leads the white ball teams.

Insiders revealed that Shaheen accepted the change and didn't protest much but pointed out that it was unfair on him to be judged on just one series.

According to the source, Shaheen's inability to effectively lead the Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League, resulting in their last-place finish, coupled with his own inconsistent performance, were key factors influencing the decision to replace him.

"The PCB Chairman had made it clear to the selectors that they must decide who should be the captain and also said they would be answerable for the performances of the national team in the future, the source added.

(With PTI Inputs)