Babar Azam's Support Saves Shadab Khan From Getting Sacked
Babar Azam will lead Pakistan in white-ball home series against New Zealand [Source: Twitter]
One of Pakistan's most improved white-ball players, Shadab Khan, lost his first-ever T20I series as captain against Afghanistan last month in the absence of regular skipper Babar Azam, who was given rest for the three matches. Azam will once again don the hat of a captain for Pakistan's upcoming home T20I and One-Day International series against New Zealand later this month, where Khan will be his deputy.
According to Cricket Pakistan, Khan has managed to hold on to his position thanks to Azam's urging selectors not to rest the leg-spinner and give him an undisturbed run until the ICC World Cup 2023.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) wanted to rest the all-rounder for New Zealand as initially planned.
Apart from the series loss, Khan irked PCB officials by making uncalled-for statements in his press conference, referring to Azam and Mohammed Rizwan's importance.
Azam even asked the selectors to stop experimenting with the 50-overs side, keeping in mind that the WC in India is due in October.
Pakistan have named a strong 16-man T20I squad that sees the return of players like Rizwan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Imad Wasim, Haris Rauf, and Fakhar Zaman.
The T20I series starts on April 14, with the first three matches being held in Lahore and the remaining two taking place in Rawalpindi. The ODI series commences on April 27.
 "Vishal Mehra")
