Ahmed Shehzad: “It was a mistake to make a performer the captain. After becoming captain, he surrounded himself with friends and selected them for the team, disregarding merit”
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Senior Pakistan batsman Ahmed Shehzad believes it was a mistake to make Babar Azam captain as he “surrounded himself with friends and selected them for the team, disregarding merit”.
In addition to his biased selection, Shehzad also noted that the 30-year-old’s performances with the bat declined.
Currently, Azam is in the midst of a long patch that has lasted for a long time.
He mustered 62 runs in three matches in the ODI tri-series against New Zealand and South Africa at an average of 20.66.
In the 2025 Champions Trophy, he finished with 87 runs in two games, which included a top score of 64, at an average of 43.50.
“It was a mistake to make a performer the captain. After becoming captain, he surrounded himself with friends and selected them for the team, disregarding merit. When you favour friends over deserving players, the wheels of domestic cricket stop turning, as genuine performers don’t get enough chances,” Shehzad told India Today.
Pakistan are now in New Zealand and kicked off their campaign in disappointing fashion as they were crushed 4-1 in the T20I series.
The two teams are now playing a three-match ODI series, which began on March 29 in Napier.
Azam was not selected for the T20I series, but did make the cut for the ODIs.
Pakistan Squad for T20I Series against New Zealand: Hasan Nawaz, Omair Yousuf, Mohammad Haris, Abdul Samad, Salman Ali Agha (captain), Irfan Khan Niazi, Khushdil Shah, Shadab Khan, Abbas Afridi, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Sufiyan Muqeem, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Khan
Pakistan Squad for ODI Series against New Zealand: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Salman Ali Agha, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Akif Javed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Imam-ul-Haq, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Irfan Khan Niazi, Naseem Shah, Sufiyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir
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