Pakistan‘s captain Babar Azam emphasized the long-standing bond between him and star cricketer Shaheen Afridi. Babar was named captain ahead of the crucial T20 World Cup after resigning from all captaincy duties back in November 2023. He took over from Shaheen Afridi, who had briefly led the team following Babar’s resignation.
During a press conference before Pakistan’s 5-match T20I series against New Zealand, Babar addressed his relationship with Shaheen and reaffirmed that the two players support each other in any situation.
“I want to make it very clear that me and Shaheen Afridi share a strong bond for quite a few years.” claimed Babar in the press conference.
“We share the same goal – to put Pakistan’s interests first in everything we do. Rather than seeking personal glory, we work together to advance and promote Pakistan on the world stage.” said the Pakistan skipper.
Babar Azam’s tenure as captain of Pakistan’s cricket team starts a new phase as he will lead the against New Zealand, Ireland, and England ahead of the T20 World Cup. Babar stated that the squad will see many changes, with young players given opportunities to prove themselves.
“Our line-up is flexible as we aim to give opportunities to our young players and build bench strength. You’ll see different combinations throughout this series as we experiment to determine what works best for the team. ” he added.
“We’ll be trying various bowling and batting arrangements, rotating players into different spots in the order. By the time we reach the Ireland and England series, we expect to have a clearer picture of our optimal line-up and combinations.” said Azam.
After being moved down to number 3 in the batting order during the T20I series in New Zealand, it will be interesting to see if Babar promotes himself back to opener’s slot this time or bats at the same position.
