Babar Azam reinstated as Pakistan's white-ball captain: Details
In a major development, Babar Azam has been reinstated as Pakistan's ODI and T20I captain. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed the same on March 31. Notably, Babar stepped down as Pakistan's all-format skipper following his side's poor campaign at the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup. Shaheen Afridi had replaced him as the T20I skipper while Shan Masood was named the Test captain.
Afridi's poor returns as captain
Afridi's only assignment as Pakistan's T20I skipper resulted in a 1-4 defeat against New Zealand earlier this year. The pacer's leadership was criticized by many. Moreover, Lahore Qalandars could only manage one win in nine games under him in the 2024 Pakistan Super League (PSL). Meanwhile, Babar will now lead Pakistan in the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup, which will be played in June.
Here is what PCB stated
"Following unanimous recommendations from the PCB's selection committee, Chairman PCB Mohsin Naqvi has appointed Babar Azam as white-ball (ODI and T20I) captain," PCB wrote on X. The current selection panel comprises Wahab Riaz, Asad Shafiq, Abdul Razzaq and Mohammad Yousuf. Notably, Pakistan will play T20I series against New Zealand (home) and England (away) before the T20 WC.
26 wins in ODIs
Babar has led the Men in Green in 43 ODIs and returned with 26 wins and 15 defeats. The tally includes 2,370 runs with the help of eight tons and 17 fifties. His average of 60.76 is only third to India's Virat Kohli (72.65) and South Africa's AB de Villiers (63.94) among captains with at least 2,000 runs in the format.
Pakistan's most successful skipper in T20Is
With 42 wins and 23 defeats in 71 games, Babar is the joint-second-most successful skipper in T20Is. While only England's Eoin Morgan (44) boasts more wins in the format, Babar shares the second spot with India's MS Dhoni and Afghanistan's Asghar Afghan (including Super Over wins). Under Babar, Pakistan reached the final of the 2022 T20 WC and the semi-final of the 2021 edition.
Second-most runs as T20I skipper
Babar's tally of 2,195 runs as T20I captain is only second to Australia's Aaron Finch (2,236). His average and strike rate read 37.84 and 129.49, respectively. Babar owns the joint-most tons as a skipper in the format (3). His tally of 23 scores of 50 or more is also the most for any captain in T20 Internationals.
