Shadab Khan will take over as captain of the national team in place of Babar Azam, who has been given a break.
On Sunday, Babar, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Afridi, and Fakhar Zaman were contacted by the chairman of the PCB Management Committee, Najam Sethi, and told that they will receive relaxation.
Furthermore given some downtime to handle his workload, Haris Rauf.
The workload of the players worries the board. So, the board views this as a crucial choice, especially in light of the T20 World Cup in 2024.
Najam Sethi, chair of the PCB Management Committee:
“I would like to extend my congratulations to Shadab Khan on being named captain of the Pakistani team for the series against Afghanistan. As Shadab Khan has been Pakistan’s vice-captain in white-ball cricket for the past couple of years, it seems sense that he will lead the team for the brief three-match T20I trip to Sharjah in Babar Azam’s absence.
“We have also selected Mohammad Yousuf as the interim head coach and batting coach for the brief Sharjah tour in order to maintain continuity. Yousuf has been a batting instructor for the national team since last year and is employed by the National High Performance Center.
The schedule of Afghanistan’s home three-match T20I series against Pakistan will be somewhat altered, it was decided last week by the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
The first game of the series will now begin on March 24, and the final two games will be played in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, on March 26 and 27.
SQUAD: Shadab Khan (C), Abdullah Shafique, Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shan Masood, Tayyab Tahir, Zaman Khan.
Reserves: Haseebullah, Usama Mir, Abrar Ahmed
Schedule
March 24: 1st T20I, Sharjah
March 26: 2nd T20I, Sharjah
March 27: 3rd T20I, Sharjah
