"I had some things going on in my mind" - PCB chief accepts it was his decision to appoint Shan Masood as Pakistan's vice-captain vs NZ

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Najam Sethi has admitted that he made the decision to hand the Pakistan ODI team's vice-captaincy to Shan Masood for their series against New Zealand earlier this year.

Quite a few eyebrows were raised when Masood was not named in Pakistan's XI for the first ODI against the Kiwis, as he was named the vice-captain when the squad was announced. Sethi has now cleared the confusion by saying that making the southpaw a deputy to skipper Babar Azam was his doing.

"The decision to appoint the captain and his vice-captain is my discretion," the PCB chairman said in a chat with the Express. "I had some things going on in my mind, and I had also consulted some people in this regard. I thought of trying [Shan Masood] as a vice-captain to test his ability."

He further explained that it was the final decision of the team management to not include Masood in the XI.

"I think that my decision was also right and after that if Shan was not included in the initial matches, it was the decision of the team management, which was right or not, only the observers can tell," he added.

"Selectors can defend their decisions" - PCB chief

While Najam Sethi accepted that he decided who the vice-captain should be, he also claimed that the final decision was always with the selectors and the team management. He categorically stated that he didn't provide any inputs in deciding the XI.

"If the selectors are conflicted, they can defend their decisions, the media rains on them and also asks questions," Sethi said. "I said that since there will be cricket questions, I don't need to sit with you, you guys have selected the players and made the decisions, so answer them yourself."

Pakistan will once again host New Zealand for an ODI and T20I series beginning later this month.