Mohammad Hafeez: “What wrong did he (Shaheen) do and what right did he (Babar) do to come back again? I think decisions like these are taken as a popular decision, it is harmful, not beneficial”
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Former Pakistan team director and interim head coach Mohammad Hafeez has taken aim at Babar Azam, saying the decision to appoint him as limited overs captain was a harmful one.
Azam returned to the leadership role after stepping down as skipper in all three formats in November 2023.
When the 29-year-old resigned, left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi replaced him as T20I captain, but his tenure only lasted one series before he was removed and Azam returned to the helm.
Hafeez admitted to being disturbed by this and questioned what Afridi did wrong to deserve being stripped of the captaincy.
“If the decision was made to remove Babar from captaincy and appoint someone else as captain, then in two months, what wrong did he (Shaheen) do and what right did he (Babar) do to come back again? I think decisions like these are taken as a popular decision, it is harmful, not beneficial. And that’s why within the team, some groups have been formed due to this decision. It is unfortunate that seeds have been sown to create issues within the team,” he told Cricket Pakistan.
Azam recently captained Pakistan in their five-match T20I series against New Zealand and made 125 runs in five games, which included a top score of 69, at an average of 31.25 and a strike-rate of 138.88.
As for Afridi, he picked up eight wickets in four matches at an average of 10 and an economy rate of 7.38.
The T20I series between Pakistan and New Zealand ended as a 2-2 draw.
Both players were then involved in the three-match T20I series against Ireland, which the men in the green won 2-1.
Azam scored 132 runs, which included two fifties, at an average of 44 and a strike-rate of 148.31
Afridi, meanwhile, snapped up seven wickets at an average of 12.71 and an economy rate of 7.41.
Next up for Pakistan will be four T20Is against England from May 22 to May 30.
Pakistan Squad for Ireland and England T20I Series: Babar Azam (capt), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan
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