Former Cricketer On Shaheen Afridi Captaincy: Former Pakistan cricketer Moin Khan believes that the PCB should have stuck with Shaheen Afridi as the T20I captain after appointing him as such earlier this year.
Afridi, who has been an integral part of the Pakistan Cricket Team across all formats, was named of the Men in Green’s T20I side. In November 2023, former all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez was brought in as the head coach of the national team. Seeing Pakistan’s recent string of poor performances, he stripped Babar Azam of captain in Tests in T20Is, with the latter going to Shaheen.
With the 2024 T20 World Cup in mind, the ace-pacer was appointed the captain for the shortest format. His first, and only, test as the national team skipper came during a five-match T20I series against New Zealand in the land of the Kiwis in January 2024.
New Zealand won the five-match series at home 4-1. Following this, Afridi was sacked as the captain as Hafeez’s head coach stint ended in February, just three months after it started. Pakistan took on the Black Caps in another five-T20I series, this time at home, and tied the series 2-2 with Babar Azam back as captain.
Former Cricketer On Shaheen Afridi Captaincy
While most view Shaheen Afridi’s appointment as the T20I captain as a failure, some argue that the fast bowler did not receive enough opportunities to demonstrate his suitability for the role. One of these people is Moin Khan, who won the 1992 World Cup with Pakistan.
Moin, in a recent interview with Cricket Pakistan, said that Afridi should have been given more of a chance as the national team captain, saying,
“Shaheen Afridi has the ability to lead the team and is highly liked by the players. He is an excellent choice for captaincy in T20s. In white-ball cricket, I don’t see anyone else suitable for the role. Removing him from the captaincy was unjust. He is one of the best T20 players, and I’ve noticed his performance has slightly declined since he was removed from the captaincy.”
Not only that, but Khan believes that there should be one captain of Pakistan across all formats, and that person should be given the responsibility long term. The person he has in mind for that role is, however, not Afridi, but wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan.
“A single captain can be appointed for all formats of cricket, but it’s crucial for any player to perform across all formats to achieve this. Whoever becomes captain should have the responsibility for the long term. There is no doubt about Mohammad Rizwan’s abilities; any criticism against him might be due to his age,” Moin said.
Shaheen Afridi was recently snubbed from the squad for the second Test against Bangladesh. He will likely return to the national side during the upcoming Test series against England.
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