Pakistan cricket team are currently hosting New Zealand at home for a five-match T20I series, which marks Babar Azam’s first international assignment since returning as captain. During the press conference, he shed light on the alleged captaincy row involving him and Shaheen Afridi. Speculations were rife that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) wanted Babar to return as the captain ahead of the upcoming 2024 T20 World Cup, which is exactly what happened. That reportedly left Shaheen unhappy with the lack of transparency and communication from PCB’s end. Babar, however, has quashed all the rumours suggesting that there’s no unrest in the Pakistan dressing room, especially between him and Shaheen.
“I want to make clear that Shaheen [Afridi] and my bond is not recent, it goes back a long way. We support each other in every situation. Our aim is to put Pakistan first, and how to put Pakistan’s name up in lights. We don’t think of individual glory, and thankfully, those elements are not present in my team,” Babar Azam said in the press conference ahead of the first T20I between Pakistan and New Zealand in Lahore.
On March 31, the PCB had announced that Babar Azam had been reappointed as the captain in the white-ball formats following discussions between the two parties. The decision came at the expense of fast bowler Shaheen Afridi being stripped of his captaincy duties in T20Is. Following Pakistan’s humiliating group-stage exit at the 2023 World Cup last November, Babar had announced that he would be stepping down as Pakistan captain in all formats.
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The decision came as a shock for the PCB as the team were about to set off on a big transition period following the World Cup. Babar’s resignation resulted in Shan Masood being appointed as the captain in Tests, while Shaheen Afridi was given the responsibility of leading the troops in the shortest format.
The move did not go as planned as Pakistan were handed a 4-1 drubbing in the five-match T20I series against New Zealand. It was Shaheen Afridi’s first series as captain. The PCB and the fans had hoped to achieve success under Shaheen, given that the 24-year-old left-arm quick led Lahore Qalandars to back-to-back titles (2022 and 2023) in the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
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