Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced the reappointment of Babar Azam as the captain for the national side’s white-ball matches, according to an official statement released on Sunday.
The decision to reinstate Azam as skipper comes ahead of Pakistan’s upcoming five-match T20I series against New Zealand, scheduled to commence from April 18.
In a tweet on its official account, the PCB stated, “Babar Azam appointed as white-ball captain.”
The announcement further mentioned, “Following a 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 29-year-old cricketer had relinquished his captaincy across all formats in November last year following Pakistan’s disappointing performance in the World Cup, marking the end of his prolonged tenure as captain.
Prior to his removal, Azam faced mounting criticism for Pakistan’s lackluster displays in tournaments like the Asia Cup, carrying over into the World Cup where they failed to progress beyond the group stage.
Azam had previously been assigned the role of white-ball captain in 2019 and took over as Test skipper in 2020. However, Pakistan did not secure any ICC or Asia Cup titles during his tenure.
In the wake of Pakistan’s dismal showing in the ICC World Cup 2023, the PCB, under Zaka Ashraf’s leadership, had appointed Shaheen Shah Afridi as the white-ball captain.
Meanwhile, Shan Masood was entrusted with the responsibility of leading the red-ball squad by the previous management.
Azam boasts an impressive international record, having represented Pakistan in 52 Tests, 117 ODIs, and 109 T20Is. He has led the team in 71 T20 matches, including the T20 World Cup, during which Pakistan won 42 matches and suffered defeat in 23 encounters.
