"Why did you remove him in the first place then?"- Danish Kaneria questions Shaheen Afridi's appointment as captain for Champions One-Day Cup 2024
Danish Kaneria questioned the Pakistani team management's decision to appoint Shaheen Afridi as one of the captains for the upcoming Champions One-Day Cup 2024. The left-arm pacer is set to lead the Lions in the domestic white-ball tournament.
Reacting to the development, Kaneria suggested that Afridi could still be one of the contenders to captain Pakistan in the future. He opined that if the fast bowler was still in the scheme of things for a leadership role, he should not have been removed as the T20I skipper abruptly after just one series.
Kaneria said on his latest YouTube video (from 4:27):
"If Shaheen Afridi has been made the captain, it means that he is being considered to lead Pakistan in the future. Why did you remove him in the first place then? They should have shown faith in him."
Shaheen Afridi was named Pakistan's T20I captain after Babar Azam relinquished captaincy across formats following the Men in Green's group-stage exit at the 2023 ODI World Cup. However, he was sacked after just one series as Pakistan suffered a 4-1 defeat to New Zealand in an away-from-home series.
Meanwhile, Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan (Wolves), Shadab Khan (Panthers), Saud Shakeel (Dolphins) and Mohammad Haris (Stallions) have been named captains for the Champions One-Day Cup. The tournament will be played in Faisalabad from September 12 to 29.
Kaneria pointed out how the likes of Misbah-ul-Haq (Wolves), Saqlain Mushtaq (Panthers), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Dolphins), Waqar Younis (Lions) and Shoaib Malik (Stallions) as mentors for the competition.
The former Pakistani spinner reckoned that instead of a white-ball tournament, the aforementioned names should have been brought in to improve the country's Test team, remarking (from 4:09):
"Pakistan have roped in many mentors for the Champions One-Day Cup. What is this? You've lost in red-ball cricket and shifting your focus to white-ball cricket."
The Shan Masood-led Pakistani Test team received widespread criticism after succumbing to a humiliating home series defeat to Bangladesh. With the 2-0 whitewash, Bangladesh clinched their maiden Test series victory over Pakistan.
"The selectors should ask him to play domestic cricket" - Danish Kaneria on Babar Azam
Pakistan's ace batter Babar Azam's form has come under the scanner following a string of underwhelming Test performances. Danish Kaneria emphasized that the 29-year-old should play domestic cricket to regain confidence.
The cricketer-turned-expert said in the same video (from 6:02):
"The selectors should ask him to play domestic cricket. They should make him understand that while he is a good player, he hasn't performed and is out of form. You won't be able to fix things unless you get the basics right. Babar should give some time to domestic cricket. He will be able to regain his form and confidence by scoring big runs in domestic cricket."
Babar Azam has failed to cross the 50-run mark in his last 16 Test innings. His last half-century in the format came in December 2022 against New Zealand. The right-handed batter scored just 64 runs across four innings at an average of 16 in the Bangladesh series.