Islamabad United Shadab Khan was quick to respond to the journalist who termed Babar Azam as the former captain of Pakistan in the post-match press conference. Shadab Khan was named as the captain of Pakistan for the t20 series against Afghanistan. The first match will be played on March 24 in Sharjah, UAE.
Shadab Khan’s Islamabad United lost to Peshawar Zalmi in the eliminator on Thursday which end their journey in PSL 2023. Speaking to the media after the loss against Peshawar, when a journalist referred to Babar Azam as the former captain, Shadab Khan said that Babar Azam is still the captain of Pakistan and they is no confusion about it.
“He was the captain and he won [PSL 8 eliminator]. Babar is still our current captain and our chairman also told you guys that he is the captain of the team. Just that he is resting, so I have stepped in. When the King is not there, the minister has to step in, just like that,” he said.
Babar Azam has been facing criticism regarding his captaincy after he failed to win a single Test at home against England and New Zealand. Many former cricketers want Babar Azam to give up his leadership role in one format and want Shadab Khan to take over T20 captaincy. Babar has now amassed 480 runs at an average of 53.33 and a strike rate of 148.60 in PSL 2023 so far.
Shadab Khan has always been a pillar of support for Babar Azam, Earlier during PSL 2023, Shadab said people should respect Pakistan’s all-format captain as being bigger than Kohinoor diamond. The 24-year-old has been an integral part of Pakistan since he made his debut and his all-around ability gives balance to the Pakistan team.
We Will Play Smart Cricket With No Fear – Shadab Khan Ahead Of The Afghanistan Series
Shadab Khan will lead the young Pakistan team with sight in the 2024 T20 world cup. Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf, and Insanullah were given chance following their sensational performance in the ongoing Pakistan super league. Speaking about the series, Shadab Khan said Pakistan will play an aggressive brand of cricket.
“We will have to play smart cricket with no fear,” said Shadab.
Senior players like Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Afridi, and Haris Rauf are rested for the series. All the senior players will return for the series against New Zealand.
SQUAD: Shadab Khan (C), Abdullah Shafique, Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shan Masood, Tayyab Tahir, Zaman Khan.