Pakistan’s white-ball skipper Babar Azam revealed that he was “surprised” hearing all the rumours about having a rift with Shaheen Afridi saying that he shares a great relationship with him.
Shaheen was appointed as Pakistan’s T20I captain after Babar was removed from all formats following the conclusion of the ICC World Cup 2023. However, after only playing one T20I series against New Zealand in January, the pacer’s journey as the skipper ended.
Newly-appointed chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Mohsin Naqvi along with the new selection committee decided to make Babar the captain again as they saw the 29-year-old best fit to lead the team in future.
After Babar was officially announced as the captain, there were rumours that Shaheen wasn’t happy with what happened. However, the 29-year-old has now confirmed that no such thing ever happened as he and Shaheen share a great bond and their only target is to win for Pakistan.
"I get surprised with the rumours I see on social media. Shaheen and I have a great bonding. Our target is only to play and win matches for our country. Pakistan is our only priority,” Azam said in a presser ahead of the five-match T20I series against New Zealand.
Remember, Pakistan will host New Zealand in their first T20I of the five-match series at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Thursday which would be Azam’s first match since returning as the skipper.
Pakistan squad
Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saim Ayub, Usman Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Azam Khan (wk), Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Amir, Abbas Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, Fakhar Zaman, Irfan Khan Niazi, Usama Mir, Zaman Khan
Reserves: Haseebullah, Mohammad Ali, Agha Salman, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Wasim Jr.
New Zealand squad
Michael Bracewell (c), Mark Chapman, Josh Clarkson, Jacob Duffy, Dean Foxcroft, Ben Lister, Cole McConchie, Jimmy Neesham, Will O’Rourke, Tim Robinson, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert (WK), Ish Sodhi, Tom Blundell, Zak Foulkes.
Pakistan vs New Zealand T20I series schedule
April 18 — 1st T20I, Rawalpindi
April 20 — 2nd T20I, Rawalpindi
April 21 — 3rd T20I, Rawalpindi
April 25 — 4th T20I, Lahore
April 27 — 5th T20I, Lahore
- Babar Azam
