Pakistan have dropped Babar Azam and Shaheen Afridi. Photo: AP
Pakistan have taken action against Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Afridi and dropped them from one format each for the series against New Zealand. Babar and Rizwan, who are often criticised for their slow batting, have lost their places in the T20I squad while there is no place for Afridi in the ODI team. All three players have led Pakistan in the past one year.
Babar made his return as the captain for the 2024 T20 World Cup. Afridi was Pakistan's T20I captain before that. Rizwan replaced Babar as Pakistan's white-ball captain in October 2024.
Pakistan lost all 4 T20Is under Rizwan. Pakistan's poor results under Rizwan combined with his slow batting resulted in the selectors moving on from him. The selection committee has appointed Salman Agha as the new T20I captain. He was Rizwan's deputy.
Rizwan has retained the ODI team's captaincy despite Pakistan crashing out of the first round of the 2025 Champions Trophy. The host nation lost the first two league stage matches to crash out. Their third game against Bangladesh was washed out. Saim Ayub is recovering from an ankle injury and he isn't part of the team. Mohammad Haris has made his return.
Pakistan are scheduled to tour New Zealand for 5 T20Is and 3 ODIs. The 5 T20Is will take place on March 16, 18, 21, 23 and 26 in Christchurch, Dunedin, Auckland, Mount Maunganui and Wellington, respectively. The 3 ODIs will be held on March 29, April 2 and 5 in Napier, Hamilton and Mount Maunganui, respectively.
Pakistan's T20I team for NZ series: Salman Agha (Captain), Hassan Nawaz, Omair Yousuf, Mohammad Haris Abdul Samad, Irfan Niazi, Khushdil Shah, Shadab Khan Abbas Afridi, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Sufiyaan Muqeem, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Khan
Pakistan's ODI team for NZ series: Mohammad Rizwan (Capt), Salman Ali Agha, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Akif Javed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Imam-ul-Haq, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Irfan Niazi, Naseem Shah, Sufiyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir
Get Latest News Live on Times Now along with Breaking News and Top Headlines from Cricket, Sports and around the world.
