Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali alleged that there is a rift between Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi over the national team’s captaincy, which could be one of the key reasons behind the team’s poor performances.
Notably, Basit’s comments came right after Pakistan’s 194-run defeat to England in the second Test at Lord’s. Multiple changes have been made to Pakistan’s leadership across formats in the past few years.
While Babar Azam leads the national team in Tests, Shaheen captains the ODI side with Salman Ali Agha is the leader of the T20I team. Speaking on the Game Plan show, Basit reckoned that the rift between the duo got its side effects on the national team now.
“Babar Azam is not a strong captain. I am not speaking about this based on the performance in England. He has made many wrong decisions. The main reason for Pakistan cricket’s downfall is the rift between Shaheen and Babar. When there was a falling-out between the two over the captaincy, Pakistan cricket was ruined that day,” Ali said on the ‘Game Plan’ show.
“Many statements were made, saying Shaheen is a very good bowler and Babar is a very good batter. The rift, whoever created that, the side effects can be seen now,” he added.
Earlier this year, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) reappointed Babar as the new Test captain after axing Shan Masood. Under Babar’s leadership, Pakistan managed to draw the two-Test tour against the West Indies. However, they suffered a 0-2 humiliation against England in the ongoing three-game series.
On Monday, August 31, the PCB decided to send back seven players home, including Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha. Test coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling head Umar Gul were also not axed. White-ball coach Mike Hesson will take charge of the third and final Test against England in Birmingham.
Pakistan’s updated Test squad: Babar Azam (c), Abdullah Fazal, Abdullah Shafique, Arafat Minhas, Azan Awais, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Muhammad Imran, Mohammad Imran Jnr, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wicket-keeper), Razaullah, Saad Baig (wk), Saim Ayub, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood and Ubaid Shah
