Sarfraz Ahmed succeeds Shahid Afridi as the new T20I captain of Pakistan
The 28-year-old Pakistani wicketkeeper-batsman, Sarfraz Ahmed has been named as their new T20I captain by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). The ‘Men in Green’ underwent a string of poor performances under their previous skipper, Shahid Afridi which led the board to strip the 36-year-old all-rounder of his captaincy duties.
The Pakistani cricket team was unable to qualify for the Asia Cup final at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka after having lost a couple of their group stage matches against their arch rivals India and Bangladesh.
Moreover, their ICC World T20 campaign didn't go quite as expected as well as the team finished 4th in a 5-team-table, losing out on a semi-final berth. Sarfraz Ahmed was the vice-captain of the Pakistani side in both the competitions before he was finally appointed as their T20I captain earlier today.
The 28-year-old has previously captained the Quetta Gladiators in the inaugural edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) that took place in Dubai earlier this year. Although his team lost the final match of the tournament to Islamabad United, Sarfraz Ahmed showed a lot of potential as the future captain of Pakistan.
Also, according to a number of reports, the Pakistani head coach, Waqar Younis’ contract has not been extended by the PCB. Aaqib Javed and Mohsin Hasan Khan are likely to be appointed as the next head coach and the chief selector by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) respectively.