Sarfaraz Ahmed named Pakistan's Test Team captain
After leading Pakistan to their maiden ICC Champions Trophy title, Sarfaraz Ahmed has been named as the captain of Test team by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). The wicketkeeper-batsman is already leading the Pakistan team in the limited formats of the game. The announcement was made by the PCB chief Shahryar Khan at a ceremony to honour the winning CT team.
Early days and ODI career
A wicket-keeper batsman, Sarfaraz Ahmed got noticed during the 2006 ICC U-19 World Cup, when he led the Pakistan team to a victory against India. He was eventually selected for the senior ODI team the following year, but became a regular only after his performance in the 2015 World Cup. Sarfaraz was appointed the vice-captain of the ODI team in late 2015.
ODI career in numbers
Having played 57 innings from 75 matches, Sarfaraz has scored 1644 runs at an average of 36.53. He has hit two centuries and 17 half-centuries, with the highest score of 105 against Ireland.
Debut and the spotlight
Sarfaraz was selected in the test team three years after his ODI debut. He was soon dropped after a series of poor performances and was recalled in 2014 and then went on to score centuries against Sri Lanka, Australia and New Zealand. The steady-batsman proved to be a worthy addition on overseas tours and soon became the first go-to wicketkeeper batsman for Pakistan.
T20 and then the ODI team
After Pakistan's loss in the 2016 ICC World T20, Sarfaraz replaced Shahid Afridi as the captain of the team. In February 2017, he took over the ODI team captaincy and led the team to their maiden Champions Trophy victory. As a captain, Sarfaraz Ahmed is known to be bold and a street-smart decision maker in all formats of the game.
