Not Shaheen Afridi! Salman Butt picks Shan Masood to replace Babar Azam as Pakistan captain

Former Pakistan opener Salman Butt has picked Shan Masood to be the Pakistan's captain for all the three formats. Shan Masood is currently Pakistan's Test captain. However, his first Test series as Pakistan's captain didn't go well as Pakistan suffered a clean sweep in Australia in a three-match Test series.

Babar Azam is Pakistan's current ODI and T20I captain but his position is under severe threat after the team's early exit from the T20 World Cup 2024. Pakistan could not qualify for the Super 8 stage and suffered a shocking exit from the group stage.

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Salman Butt picks Shan Masood to replace Babar Azam as Pakistan captain

While speaking on his YouTube channel, Salman Butt backed Shan Masood to be Pakistan's captain for all three formats. Butt claimed that the current leadership has a lot of attitude and Pakistan cricket needs a player like Shan Masood in this situation.

"There is some fuss because of which despite having skill, players haven't been able to execute. There is someone who doesn't have any strategy for planning, but still has a lot of attitude. To silence that attitude, I would definitely make Shan Masood the captain," Butt opined.

Butt further reasoned his argument that Pakistan needs a captain who stands can stand apart from the culture of friendship and groupism in the team and Shan Masood could be the perfect foil.

"I would do that for some time at least. Something like that needs to be done for some time. Pakistan have constantly backed certain players who have their own inner circles. So, you need someone who stands higher than all these groups and friendships," Butt said.

Shan Masood leads Yorkshire in the County Championship

Along with being the captain of Pakistan's Test team, Shan Masood is currently leading Yorkshire in the County Championship in England. He also leads the Karachi Kings in the Pakistan Super League (PSL).

Babar Azam had already quit Pakistan's captaincy from all the formats after the team's dismal performance in the ODI World Cup last year. Shaheen Afridi was appointed Pakistan's T20I captain for a brief period. But the left-arm pacer was removed from the role after just one T20I series, which the Men in Green lost in New Zealand.

Afterwards, Mohsin Naqvi joined the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) as the chairman and reinstated Babar Azam as the captain of white-ball teams. But Pakistan's disappointing performance in the T20 World Cup 2024, where they lost to the USA and India in their first two games, has put a lot of pressure on PCB to remove Babar Azam from his role.

Mohsin Naqvi has made it clear that he will consult with the current white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten and some former Pakistan cricketers before taking a decision on Babar Azam. Currently, Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Rizwan are some of the other captaincy options for Pakistan.

Not only his captaincy, but Babar Azam's performance with the bat was also below par in the T20 World Cup 2024. The stylish right-hander scored 122 runs in 4 matches at an average of 40.66. But his strike rate of 101.66 did not go down well with the experts and he was criticized heavily.