The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), have named Babar Azam as the captain for the white-ball formats, with the T20 World Cup 2024 just around the corner. This step is intended to pick the PCB’s Selection Committee members in full, queuing up the Pakistan team for the upcoming competitions.
Babar Azam Retruns to Captaincy:
After a less-than-successful change, Babar Azam, the leader of the Pakistani Cricket squad is back as the skipper for the limited over versions of the game, including One Day International and Twenty20 International. Mohsin Naqvi, the chairman of the PCB, confirmed this through the Social media platforms, allowing Azam to resume his responsibility.
Previous Leadership Changes:
Team Pakistan unluckily managed to get a below-par performance in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, India 2023 edition, which led to his removal from the captaincy, Azam leaving the position. When the team failed to proceed beyond the group stage, the team leadership changed, with the newly appointed captain, Shaheen Shah Afridi, leading the T20I and ODI teams, while Shan Masood was now in charge of the Test team.
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Shaheen’s Captaincy Stint:
Lahore Qalandars’ Left arm fast baller Shaheen Shah Afridi was named as the (T20I) captain because of his outstanding appearances in domestic cricket, not to mention his most successful roles as Lahore Qalandars captain in the Pakistan Super League. Nevertheless, the team’s performance under him during the series vs New Zealand was quite unexpected as they could win only 1 out of 5 matches.
Upcoming Challenges for Babar Azam:
With the reappointment, Babar Azam is to become Pakistan’s captain and will lead the team in the upcoming five-match T20I home series against New Zealand. This 5 -5-match series will be a key warm-up Programme for Pakistan in the T20 World Cup which is scheduled to be played in just two months from now. Azam, who was the team captain that achieved this last time with Pakistan (a historic final during the T20 World Cup in Australia, in 2022) now hopes to follow, or even surpass the progress, as the tournament moves to the US and West Indies.
T20 World Cup Prospects:
Pakistan’s group stage of the Twenty20 tournament in group A features India, Ireland, Canada, and the USA. Under Babar Azam’s captaincy, Pakistan aims to repair their tactical drawbacks and work on their weaknesses to play in the championship strongly. The journey of the T20 team in the World Cup will give fans a reason to wait and look for every match eagerly.
Conclusion:
The reappointment of Babar Azam as white-ball captain of Pakistan is a premeditated act on the PCB’s part in the bid to increase the national team’s chances in the upcoming T20 World Cup. On top of that, Azam’s captaincy and batting skills will hopefully, offer a robust boost to Pakistan, and above all, to lure the victor’s trophy home.
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