New Delhi: The Pakistan Cricket Board has reposed faith on Shan Masood to continue as the skipper for the red-ball format. Ahead of a packed international season, coach Jason Gillespie along with the board members decided to extend Masood’s contract. But a decision on the leadership role of Babar Azam in the white-ball format has been put on hold.
The Pakistan team suffered an early exit from the recently-concluded T20 World Cup where they exited the tournament in the group stages of the event. Pakistan is scheduled to host England in a three-match Test series in October this year, while rubbers against Bangladesh, South Africa and the West Indies are also on the calendar.
PCB conducts high level meeting
The Pakistan cricket board held a meeting on Wednesday which was attended by senior board officials, national selectors, Gillespie, white ball formats coach Gary Kirsten and assistant coach Azhar Mahmood, to discuss Pakistan’s meek outing in the recent T20 World Cup in the Americas.
“The meeting was held to discuss ways to move forward with a comprehensive blueprint for the national team in red and white ball formats,” indicated a source aware of the developments.
Masood, who took over as Test captain ahead of the tour to Australia earlier this year, received a complete vote of confidence.
“Shan got the support at the meeting to continue as Test captain for the upcoming series against Bangladesh, England, South Africa and the West Indies between August and January,” he said.
However, no decision was taken on Babar’s white ball captaincy although his performance as captain and batsman came under a lot of discussion. Babar, according to the source, came under criticism for his lack of strength and leadership skills when the chips were down, especially during the T20 WC.
Shan Masood will continue as the Test skipper for Pakistan while a decision on the future of Babar Azam and Shaheen Afridi has been put on hold. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
