Shoaib Akhtar: “Agha Salman is not an inspiring captain. He seems to be ‘yes-man’ and that’s why he was appointed captain. He has no say, it seems. A leader takes tough decisions, he can’t do that”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Legendary Pakistan pace bowler Shoaib Akhtar has lashed out at T20I captain Salman Ali Agha, accusing him of being a “yes-man.”
Continuing to take aim at Salman, Akhtar added that the 31-year-old “is not an inspiring captain” and seems to have no power to make “tough decisions.”
Under Salman’s leadership, the men in green recently reached the final of the 2025 Asia Cup, where they lost to India. It should be noted that the men in green were beaten by their arch-rivals twice more before the final.
“Agha Salman is not an inspiring captain. He seems to be ‘yes-man’ and that’s why he was appointed captain. He has no say, it seems. A leader takes tough decisions, he can’t do that,” Akhtar was quoted as saying by journalist Farid Khan on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Salman is now featuring in Pakistan’s home series against South Africa and amassed 170 runs, which included a top score of 93, at an average of 42.50 in two Tests.
As for the ongoing three-match T20I series, he has only batted once and scored two runs.
After the T20Is, the men in green and the Proteas will go head to head in a three-match ODI series between November 4 and 8.
Following that, Pakistan will face Sri Lanka in a three-match ODI series from November 11 to 15, before joining a T20I tri-series with Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe from November 17 to 29.
Pakistan squad for South Africa T20I Series: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abdul Samad, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan (wicketkeeper), Usman Tariq
Reserves: Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Sufiyan Muqeem
Pakistan squad for South Africa ODI Series: Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Faisal Akram, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha
Pakistan squad for Sri Lanka ODI Series: Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Faisal Akram, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha
Pakistan squad for Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe T20I Tri-Series: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abdul Samad, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan (wicketkeeper), Usman Tariq
Reserves: Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Sufiyan Muqeem
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