Shahid Afridi, Waqar Younis Likely To Join PCB & Pakistan Setup Post World Cup - Reports

Former Pakistan cricketers Shahid Afridi, Aaqib Javed, and Waqar Younis are likely to be adjusted in some capacity in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and national team after the ICC World Cup 2023. The reports in PTI suggested that Younis Khan and Azhar Ali are also in contention.

The reports suggested that they will be included in the PCB and the team soon. The current committee-led by Zaka Ashraf, who got the three-month extension, will soon be discussing the appointments.

A source close to PCB said that Zaka Ashraf and the other committee will be discussing possible plans and appointments for the future as the ICC World Cup 2023 ends. Speaking to PTI, he explained:

“After the World Cup since the Pakistan squad has to leave for Australia and New Zealand. Zaka Ashraf who heads the cricket management committee running the Pakistan Cricket Board affairs has already started discussing possible plans and appointments for the future.”

Apart from this, the source also revealed that PCB is also discussing the name of Shoaib Malik for either captain or coach of the national T20 side. The veteran recently made himself available for the team.

The decisions will be made after having discussions with former players and an evaluation of the team’s performance at the Asia Cup and the World Cup. It remains to be seen what will be the roadmap for the team going ahead.

ENG vs PAK: Wasim Akram and Shahid Afridi share their verdict on Babar Azam facing criticism

Pakistan skipper Babar Azam has faced a lot of criticism after the team’s poor performance in the ICC World Cup 2023. There have been even calls to remove him as the skipper of the team.

Shahid Afridi believes that Babar Azam shouldn’t concentrate on these things and should focus on playing well. He explained:

“I don’t think Babar needs to give any response, he should just concentrate on playing well so that no one can criticise you.”

Wasim Akram said that Babar Azam should be answerable to the media and he needs to understand that if the team doesn’t perform well he should have every answer. He explained:

“If you do well, everything goes fine. But if you don’t, then you have to be answerable to people and in the media.”

Pakistan will finish ICC World Cup 2023 in the 5th spot on the points table. They suffered losses against India, Australia, Afghanistan, South Africa and potentially England.