Shaheen Afridi Was Best Choice For Pakistan's T20I Captaincy - Ahmed Shehzad

Pakistan cricketer Ahmed Shahzad opened up about Shaheen Afridi becoming the T20I captain. He said that making the speedster skipper was the right call taken by the PCB. 

After the debacle in the ICC World Cup 2023, Pakistan Cricket witnessed massive changes. The coaching staff was sacked and along with it, PCB fired the entire selection committee. If this was not enough, there was a change in the leadership of the team as well. 

Babar Azam stepped down as the skipper of the team and PCB made two different captains. While Shan Masood was named as Test captain, Shaheen Afridi was given the opportunity to captain the team in the T20I format. His first assignment will be the upcoming T20I series against New Zealand. 

Shaheen Afridi has been impressive as a leader in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). He showed sensational leadership skills for Lahore Qalandars in the tournament. The pacer won two titles as a skipper and was under the radar of selectors for the captaincy choice even when talks were there to remove Babar Azam as captain. 

Ahmed Shahzad highlighted that Shaheen Afridi winning two titles in PSL is a big thing. He backed him to be successful as Pakistan’s skipper and sent him good wishes. Speaking to reporters, he said: 

“Shaheen Afridi was the best choice in the current circumstances. He has won two PSL titles, which in itself is a big thing. Lahore Qalandars showed faith in him and he won them two titles. I hope he takes good decisions and delivers under pressure. My prayers are with him.” 

Shaheen Afridi to be next seen in action during the Pakistan Tests 

Shaheen Afridi will next be seen in action during the Test series against Australia. Pakistan will be playing three games. The first Test match between Pakistan and Australia will be played in Perth from 14th December. The focus will then shift towards the second match, to be played from 27th December in Melbourne. The final match will happen in Sydney from 3rd January. 

Shaheen Afridi is expected to play a huge role in the series. Pakistan haven’t played great cricket in Australia of late. But this time around with a lot of exciting talents around, they are expected to put up a great fight. For that, Afridi will be crucial. In 27 games, he has picked 105 wickets at an average of around 25.