Babar Azam’s chances of being the Test captain again seem to have been greatly affected after the USA stopped Pakistan from reaching the Super 8 stage in the T20 World Cup. People familiar with the situation told Geo News that Shan Masood will continue as the Test captain for the two-game series against Bangladesh in August. It was also mentioned that after the T20 World Cup problems, the board is not happy with Babar’s leadership skills. The Bangladesh series will be the first time for former Australian fast bowler Jason Gillespie to work as Pakistan’s head coach for Test matches.
Masood became Pakistan’s Test captain when Babar chose to step down from leading in all formats following the ODI World Cup last year. Shaheen was then picked to take over as the T20I captain from Babar.
Shaheen’s short time as Pakistan’s captain finished in April. He was taken off the T20I captain position after only leading one series against New Zealand. New Zealand beat Pakistan in every part of the game, causing a 4-1 loss in the T20I series for Shaheen’s team.
Before the T20 World Cup began, Babar was put back as the captain for white-ball games. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) called this change a “strategic move” in a statement.
But the PCB’s decision didn’t work out as they wanted. They hired Gary Kirsten as the white-ball head coach before the tournament to improve their chances. However, Pakistan was eliminated in the group stage. They lost their first two games against the USA and their big rival, India.
The two straight losses put them close to being out of the competition. They bounced back and won their next game against Canada by a big margin.
The USA has made it to the Super 8. Pakistan has ended their tournament against Ireland this Sunday in Florida.
