Shaheen Shah Afridi appointed T20I captain for Pakistan

Well that’s up to the opposition to hide their spinners against him and being forced to bowl them in the death or in the powerplay if that’s the tactic they want to apply.

Otherwise they can just bowl them to Babar, Rizwan, Iftikhar and other jobbers and get through their bowling plans the way they deem fit.
For a start Malik isn't going to dominate any proper spinners at his age, he is better at playing spin than some of the others but in the last T20 spin played little part and many called for his selection. Lest you forget, AA was made to look like a total numpty on the Aussie wickets and Shoaib Malik would have been in the same boat but worse. I would like to See him as our Mentor/coach. He communicates well and would help.
 
Well,

There is no Rashid Khan, Harry Brook and Sikander Raza representing Pakistan btw
I think Weise was the real mastermind. He is the one who calms him down & reigns him to control his emotion & temper. The question is who's gonna do the job here? Iftekhar, Fakhar?
 
The standard of cricket in PSL is terrible. It can’t be a reliable barometer for success in international cricket.

LQ have had the best squad for 3-4 years now. Shaheen winning the PSL with an average team like PZ would say more about his leadership.

Nevertheless, it will be exciting to see how he leads the team and if there is any noticeable difference from the Babar era.
Outside the WC, T20 International cricket has less value than Sunday Parks league cricket. So are we going to flog him for pointless matches?
 
The standard of cricket in PSL is terrible. It can’t be a reliable barometer for success in international cricket.

LQ have had the best squad for 3-4 years now. Shaheen winning the PSL with an average team like PZ would say more about his leadership.

Nevertheless, it will be exciting to see how he leads the team and if there is any noticeable difference from the Babar era.
Get ready to waste all the reviews in first over and him batting among top 6.
 
My heartfelt congratulations to Shahid Afridi.

Btw people are deluded if they think Pakistan will win things with Shaheen in charge. Just remember that you're still playing with Shadab, Nawaz, Rauf in your team.
 
There goes the 2 reviews in his first 2 overs. Comes across as someone who thinks with his feet !!
 
Outside the WC, T20 International cricket has less value than Sunday Parks league cricket. So are we going to flog him for pointless matches?
Pakistan needs to find a way to play competitive cricket which means either playing the B and C teams with your B and C players or only playing the A teams.

Had the Asia Cup and World Cup not happened, Pakistan would still have believed that they are number 1.

It is obviously not feasible on paper because the big sides rotate players and Pakistan don’t, so it seems that Pakistan under Shaheen would be lulled into yet another false sense of security before everything falls apart during the next World Cup.
 
My heartfelt congratulations to Shahid Afridi.

Btw people are deluded if they think Pakistan will win things with Shaheen in charge. Just remember that you're still playing with Shadab, Nawaz, Rauf in your team.
And with Babar and Rizwan botching the powerplay to play themselves in.

Why are you so predictable with your biased agendas?
 
And with Babar and Rizwan botching the powerplay to play themselves in.

Why are you so predictable with your biased agendas?
Shaheen has full authority to change the opening pair. I will fully support him. But Pakistan will still remain a dud team.
 
Pakistan needs to find a way to play competitive cricket which means either playing the B and C teams with your B and C players or only playing the A teams.

Had the Asia Cup and World Cup not happened, Pakistan would still have believed that they are number 1.

It is obviously not feasible on paper because the big sides rotate players and Pakistan don’t, so it seems that Pakistan under Shaheen would be lulled into yet another false sense of security before everything falls apart during the next World Cup.
In the current model, you will only find out if you have the good under pressure in WCs because bilateral T20 and ODI cricket has no value. Franchise cricket may be pointless rubbish,but it's more competitive than T20 international cricket bar PK-Ind matches. So SSA will have a tough decision to make, does he flog himself in pointless matches or get tactical and play in meaningful matches. He needs to be saved from himself
 
Shaheen has full authority to change the opening pair. I will fully support him. But Pakistan will still remain a dud team.
But you don’t want him to change the opening pair do you? Instead you’ve already laid the foundation of what you will pick to criticise as the reason of our mediocrity (the bowlers)
 
I think this is not a wise decision.
Shaheens shoulders drop after he gets hit for a six.
Doesn’t look like an inspirational figure, not even seen him being active in the field.
Anyway, it’s a mystery box kind of thing, maybe he clicks/ maybe a Jack in the box comes out
 
But you don’t want him to change the opening pair do you? Instead you’ve already laid the foundation of what you will pick to criticise as the reason of our mediocrity (the bowlers)
No, I genuinely want him to open with Fakhar and Saim so that this myth of Fakhar/Saim being the best T20 opening pair is also busted.

Btw Fakhar's ODI powerplay SR is only 80. I'm pretty sure he opens in ODI.
 
1) Will he be able to end the RizBar farce permanently & force these guys to bat down the order(& drop them if they become burden like last year)?
2) Will he be able to check his urge to play every useless bilateral match for statpadding even if they are against England Z or Nepal Uganda Canada?
3) Will he be able to control his emotion, temper & overall volatile nature whenever someone like Warner, Rohit or QDK puts the pump on him?
4) Will he let Rizwan make a fool out of himself by burning all the reviews within his first over?
5) Will he be more generous with people like Imad & Shan who are not part of the clique?
6) Will he let Haris, Ayub & all the next generation shine on the cost of his friends' ranking & milestone obsession?
7) Will he atleast make an honest attempt to slowly move away from the cake cutting biriany gobbling reel making excessive overseas shopping culture?
8) Will he prohibit himself & others to take part in all those mickey mouse leagues around the globe?

The probability of his tenure's success depends entirely on the answers of these questions.
 
No, I genuinely want him to open with Fakhar and Saim so that this myth of Fakhar/Saim being the best T20 opening pair is also busted.
So that if they do not perform like the modern white ball openers do so, you can then ridicule them and call for Babar and Rizwan to return?

Seriously man. Why can’t you understand it’s better to have the right kind of players in the right position instead of players who only play for themselves whilst the team balance suffers?
 
So that if they do not perform like the modern white ball openers do so, you can then ridicule them and call for Babar and Rizwan to return?

Seriously man. Why can’t you understand it’s better to have the right kind of players in the right position instead of players who only play for themselves whilst the team balance suffers?
Sure have the right kind of players. But Fakhar needs to improve on his powerplay SR first. Still better than Babar or Rizwan, that I will grant.
 
Also, you need to understand that majority of matches that you are losing are because you don't have a middle order and your bowling attack is toothless. Babar and Rizwan have lost some matches due to their slow run-rate but they are not the whole reason why you lose matches. The major problem lies in the other areas.
 
I like this more than the Shan appointment. At least he is a for sure pick in the team unlike Shan who averages 32 in Test cricket. Really all that I care about is how good he is tactically and I have no clue so I guess I’ll reserve judgment.

We play no ODIs the next year and the T20 WC is next year so I imagine we’ll be playing our best team every game trying to figure the right combo out and Shaheen to get settled as captain. Honestly thinking about just not following LOI cricket and instead going back to only paying attention to Test. Too many tournaments, too many T20 series, and just too much cricket in general going on - kinda dilutes the product. But wishing Shaheen the best.
 
I'm sure Shaheen can lead this side - he is a world class bowler and has captaincy experience from PSL. The only concern I have is his fitness and whether he will have the wisdom to know when to sit out of games, even if it means relinquishing captaincy to the VC for that game or two while he recuperates.
 
Wish SSA had been made test captain, now he'll waste time in pointless T20 bilaterals and suffer fatigue, injury, as captain he will have to play them all including against minnows.
 
Tough test for him this.

He's not a very experienced captain and its been a smooth ride for him so far.

Let's see how he copes with the pressures this job brings.
 
I like this more than the Shan appointment. At least he is a for sure pick in the team unlike Shan who averages 32 in Test cricket. Really all that I care about is how good he is tactically and I have no clue so I guess I’ll reserve judgment.

We play no ODIs the next year and the T20 WC is next year so I imagine we’ll be playing our best team every game trying to figure the right combo out and Shaheen to get settled as captain. Honestly thinking about just not following LOI cricket and instead going back to only paying attention to Test. Too many tournaments, too many T20 series, and just too much cricket in general going on - kinda dilutes the product. But wishing Shaheen the best.
Shan won't change anything. I've followed this guy and saw his interview his saj.

He the pinnacle of excuses but utilising fancy English to cover it up.

But who is he fooling? We're educated? We will easily see through this BS
 
I’m double minded on this decision. It could prove to be a good one given he has led his team to two consecutive PSL titles.

Bad because he is way too young and is prone to injuries. If he doesn’t manage himself, his career could turn out to be a bumpy ride. I hope it doesn’t happen and he rests for meaningless matches
 
Probably the best option right now. Shaheen in the PSL has shown he is not your timid and dull captain.

With Lahore Qalandars however he has the staff around him which is really good. Lets hope he manages to get and build something similar for Pakistan as well.
 
He doesn't need to play every match even if is the kaptaan.

His deputy could fill in for the matches vs minnows or understrength teams.
If our Cricketing culture can understand this them things can change for better in Pakistan Cricket
 
I think Weise was the real mastermind. He is the one who calms him down & reigns him to control his emotion & temper. The question is who's gonna do the job here? Iftekhar, Fakhar?
Can we give Wiese nationality? We need a pace bowling All Rounder anyways.
 
Remember this going forward lads,

1. There is no Rashid Khan representing Pakistan, LQ’s main banker and match winner

2. There is no Brooks, Billings, Wiese, Sikander Raza in the middle to steer the ship for Pakistan. These guys played a MONUMENTAL role in making Shaheen look good as a T20 captain.
 
I think Weise was the real mastermind. He is the one who calms him down & reigns him to control his emotion & temper. The question is who's gonna do the job here? Iftekhar, Fakhar?
Get Weise in the team management setup then?
 
To all those worrying about SSA playing meaningless bilaterals. He was doing the same under Babar as well.

There needs to be a change in overall approach towards playing B/C/D and thats something the caliber of @Saj can deliver the message to our new director of cricket - Hafeez.

My recommended solution is Abdullah Shafique as the VC and to lead in the matches involving minnows or C/D teams with Shaheen still having veto over selection/playing 11 so that Abdullah doesnt start having any other ideas.
 
Good luck to Shaheen.

If he is really 23 years old, I think it is too early to be the captain. If he leads the team in 2024 T20 WC, Pakistan will not win the cup.
 
SSA won't be the captain people think he is, he's in the same golden boy circle.

I knew Muhammad haris wouldn't be given captaincy, pcb wouldn't ever dare
 
Good luck to Shaheen.

If he is really 23 years old, I think it is too early to be the captain. If he leads the team in 2024 T20 WC, Pakistan will not win the cup.
You lot put an unfit old Rohit as captain with the hopes of silverware based on his ipl exploits, this strategy might work out for you guys. Why wouldn’t it work for Pakistan with the younger and fitter captain?
 
You lot put an unfit old Rohit as captain with the hopes of silverware based on his ipl exploits, this strategy might work out for you guys. Why wouldn’t it work for Pakistan with the younger and fitter captain?
Rohit was still a good batsman when he was chosen as captain and he still is. I believe he was chosen as the captain based on
(i) His captaincy whenever he led India in Kohli's absence.
(ii) His man management capabilities.
(iii) His performance as captain of Mumbai Indians.

Even when Dhoni was the captain, Rohit was assisting him on the field.
 
You lot put an unfit old Rohit as captain with the hopes of silverware based on his ipl exploits, this strategy might work out for you guys. Why wouldn’t it work for Pakistan with the younger and fitter captain?
In Pakistan set up, you need a strong authoritative personality as captain. I don't believe a young guy will have that authority. Probably down the years, but not now.
 
You lot put an unfit old Rohit as captain with the hopes of silverware based on his ipl exploits, this strategy might work out for you guys. Why wouldn’t it work for Pakistan with the younger and fitter captain?
Rohit wasn't old or unfit. He had a glaring weakness which was inswing and every bowler figured him out, since then he worked on it and has developed that legslide slick for 6, so he won't ever get out in that fashion again.

Prior to that inswing exploit, rohit smashed multiple match winning scores including 250+ scores and the Hitman monicker was already adopted.

He has also been personally groomed by Dhoni on various aspects and Dhoni is one who entrusted him as the perfect replacement for Sehwag.

Shan is a failure lol, big difference. Rohit before the exploit had multiple centuries, on par with sanath before surpassing him recently.

What century does shan have in white ball cricket? If you're referring to test similar logic applies, rohit has established himself as an all format batter.
 
Rohit wasn't old or unfit. He had a glaring weakness which was inswing and every bowler figured him out, since then he worked on it and has developed that legslide slick for 6, so he won't ever get out in that fashion again.

Prior to that inswing exploit, rohit smashed multiple match winning scores including 250+ scores and the Hitman monicker was already adopted.

He has also been personally groomed by Dhoni on various aspects and Dhoni is one who entrusted him as the perfect replacement for Sehwag.

Shan is a failure lol, big difference. Rohit before the exploit had multiple centuries, on par with sanath before surpassing him recently.

What century does shan have in white ball cricket? If you're referring to test similar logic applies, rohit has established himself as an all format batter.
Who is talking about Shan here?
 
My recommended solution is Abdullah Shafique as the VC and to lead in the matches involving minnows or C/D teams with Shaheen still having veto over selection/playing 11 so that Abdullah doesnt start having any other ideas.
Yeah keep making the same mistakes again and again

The wrong kind of T20 batsmen being preferred as leaders
 
In Pakistan set up, you need a strong authoritative personality as captain. I don't believe a young guy will have that authority. Probably down the years, but not now.
Shaheen is recent ICC player of the year. Has won two PSLs under his captaincy. Pakistan’s bowling spearhead. Political clout through Shahid Afridi. I dont think theres anyone with more authority than him in Pakistan cricket.
 
Yeah keep making the same mistakes again and again

The wrong kind of T20 batsmen being preferred as leaders
Okay, fair point, i also suggested Fakhar as the other option. Who would you want as VC?
 
Okay, fair point, i also suggested Fakhar as the other option. Who would you want as VC?
Fakhar is a good choice. I don’t mind Imad either as he has some leadership/charisma as well.

Ideally he needs a mature figure head like Shoaib Malik to make sure he keeps his emotions in check
 
SSA is a good choice IMO, what is yet to be seen is if he can manage the players and make hard decisions around selection.
 
Great Pakistan, so much talent, and such tiny brains. I do not think he is mature enough to handle this.
Also, his bowling has been rusty and he should simply focus on regaining his lost form.
This will lead to disaster.
 
I did say I didn't think Shaheen wasn't viable candidate purely because I worried if Shaheens on field decisions might possibly be influenced by outside individuals namely his father in-law, and the same reasons apply to my not thinking Shan was viable candidate. but now that they have been both been chosen so best of luck to them both! and TBH, Iv got 2/3 separate captain's Pakistan for once is moving in the right direction
 
as long as they just don't just change the captain's and keep churning the same old players over and over instead trying fresh new players.
 
Fakhar is a good choice. I don’t mind Imad either as he has some leadership/charisma as well.

Ideally he needs a mature figure head like Shoaib Malik to make sure he keeps his emotions in check
Shoaib Malik? After a moment of sanity from your end, you are back to ridiculous suggestions. :facepalm:
 
Dumb move. They should let the young kid enjoy his life without this extra burden. He's the type who takes pressure
 
Remember this going forward lads,

1. There is no Rashid Khan representing Pakistan, LQ’s main banker and match winner

2. There is no Brooks, Billings, Wiese, Sikander Raza in the middle to steer the ship for Pakistan. These guys played a MONUMENTAL role in making Shaheen look good as a T20 captain.
Apart from Rashid Khan, the rest are OK players and will be replaced by other OK players. In PSL 2023, Brook wasn’t even there while Wiese did pathetic with the bat.
 
Saud as test.
Haris the wicket keeper as odi and t20

Muhammad haris captained his team to acc emerging Asia cup victory and granted he had the best players compared to newbie Indians, Afghans were playing a near full strength team and were superior and we came on top.

He's young but I saw the cup, his aggressive captaincy is what we need.

Saud is chill and patient in test.

These kids may seem young and inexperienced and bad choices but we need new fresh blood.

Babar is 100% at fault for blocking pathways for youngsters but it didn't happen, look at how NZ managed their players and how India managed their and how we managed purs?

We need a new fresh blood, with new fresh faces and a string of 20 to 25 players groomed for next 4 years.

No more playing same winning 11 and if we get butchered or injury happens we panick and Select a dark horse like hasan Ali.

We also need proper merit based selections. No board on the planet would select nawaz or shadab over abrar irrespective of experience given the horrific stats of sheddy and nawaz.

And if you want an experienced captain then heck choose imad waseem for t20 for all I care, but we need fresh blood, a fresh start and a new transition.

India didn't cry about losing 2-1 to us in 2012 when their team was in transition so why shpuld we?
I agree with your suggestions. But we need to wait till saud and haris have a few matches under their belt and have a permanent place in their team. I can see shan being sacked soon(he doesn't even deserve a spot in the team) and after that saud will be the likely one to takeover. In white ball I would have preferred rizwan for the time being as you can't make your premier fast bowler captain of t20 team. He will be run to ther ground. Rizwan has made 3 straight finals in the psl alongside a trophy so he could have been a suitable temporary option.
 
two questions for me.. LQ were seriously strong last time and the other thing is Shaheen's fitness??
 
Its a welcome move, Shaheen is a aggressive bowler, we can expect aggressive captaincy from him…. Babar was a way defensive in his captaincy
 
We should start looking for another opening bowler as Shaheen won’t last long and will get injured in the next 6 to 8 months if he continues to play every series and every ICC tournament for Pakistan.
 
Better have the vice captain ready since this dude is going to be injured every other series
 
Shaheen has been appointed rightfully as a T20 captain. He has enough exposure in PSL to be captaining in the shorter format. I would have been against the decision if he had been made the ODI captain as well. The only thing that worries me is his fitness. He was already playing every dead rubber and useless matches against Zimbabwe etc. No after becoming a captain, he is not going to sit out, no chance left.
 
Congratulations to Shahid Afridi and Aaqib javed for making propaganda
Karma will hit them back
 
Can Shaheen make the strong decisions like removing Babar, Rizwan from the T20 opening spots and replacing them with Sharjeel, Fakhar?
 
Can Shaheen make the strong decisions like removing Babar, Rizwan from the T20 opening spots and replacing them with Sharjeel, Fakhar?
He should be kept away from selecting 15 . He can select 11 . We don’t want another yaari dosti
 
I agree with your suggestions. But we need to wait till saud and haris have a few matches under their belt and have a permanent place in their team. I can see shan being sacked soon(he doesn't even deserve a spot in the team) and after that saud will be the likely one to takeover. In white ball I would have preferred rizwan for the time being as you can't make your premier fast bowler captain of t20 team. He will be run to ther ground. Rizwan has made 3 straight finals in the psl alongside a trophy so he could have been a suitable temporary option.
Fair
 
This is a very bad appointment , Babar to blame for the madness, stubbornness and backing dosti yaari which cost him the captaincy and put the team in trouble.. PCB running wild on emotions and doing unnecessary changes for the CWC debacle..

Pak were the finalists of the T20 WC last year and didnt lose like India did in SF, only under Babar Pak looked to compete against India but in this tournament his bowlers failed and his own performance didnt give him the confidence which is also a concern ... Yes openers were costing the team is not entirely correct they are also the ones who do the bulk of scoring and putting defendable total in excess of 170 most of the time but the middle order is always non-existent without proper batsman which is still not addressed, look at the way Rizwan owned no.4 slot even when he is struggling against top teams...

One aspect he failed miserably was to learn from past mistakes and the art of captaincy which needs direction, also dont have any senior or prev captains in the side to help him around...
 
Can’t wait for him to open the batting. It’s about time we had an Afridi in the top order
 
Shahid Afridi while speaking on a local news channel, addressed speculations about his alleged role in making Shaheen Shah Afridi the T20 captain:

“I always have been in the favor of Mohammad Rizwan. I swear, I never talked about making Shaheen the captain, nor did I ever lobby. I am not involved in these things. I don't have to, and I don't like it either."

"I said that Babar should not be removed from the captaincy. I wanted to keep Shaheen away from the captaincy. It has to happen; this is what happens to the captain in the end."
 
Remember this going forward lads,

1. There is no Rashid Khan representing Pakistan, LQ’s main banker and match winner

2. There is no Brooks, Billings, Wiese, Sikander Raza in the middle to steer the ship for Pakistan. These guys played a MONUMENTAL role in making Shaheen look good as a T20 captain.
Things are only going to improve.

Even Geoffrey Boycott’s grandma can do better captaincy than Babar
 
Hopefully Fakhar/Abdullah.
Why fakhar? Either he should be the captain at this age or else just play as a player. A vice captain should be the one who can be groomed as a future captain.
 
Oh no!! :facepalm:

He had guys like Hafeez, Wiese and Zaman helping him with LQ.

On his own, he is nowhere good enough and even Babar is better.
 
Why fakhar? Either he should be the captain at this age or else just play as a player. A vice captain should be the one who can be groomed as a future captain.
The same way India had Shikar Dhawan as captain.
 
Such an idiotic stupid and brainless decision by pcb. Shaheen has fitness issues and fast bowlers cant play every t20. Also during t20 games fast bowlers typically go off the field to rest or hydrate or stretch their muscles. Shaheen already has had so many injuries- this will only aggravate matters.

Also he being a junior- not sure who he can order babar or rizwan to move down the order if he wants to. Imagine bumrah or shami being ind t20 captain. The physical strain on their bodies would be ridiculous playing every single t20 game plus ipl matches and odis and tests as well. Similar thing with shaheen..

FWIW even though I don't like rizwan as captain (feel he's too dramatic and theatrical) he was the to go.option as he's a guaranteed starter in t20s.. you have to justify being in the team as a player first before you being a captain and barring Shaheen and babar- he was the only certain starter..this will not end well at all for pak and Shaheen.
 
The same way India had Shikar Dhawan as captain.

The same way India had Shikar Dhawan as captain.
Shikhar was a temperory captain because india rested all their main players, thats a completely different case. Infact Fakhar is the best option for captaincy in ODIs and t20s right now. And under him someone like abdullah or any other young player can be groomed as vice captain for future leadership.
 
I for one can see Pakistan lifting the next t20I worldcup under shaheen if he manages to captain the same way as LQ such as discarding useless players like Sohail Akhtar, aggressive approach, giving youngsters like Shafique, Zaman the chance to play etc.

For Pakistan, he needs to do the following:

Remove Rizwan and promote Haris/Haseebullah to bat.

Saim Ayub and Fakhar should be opening partners with Abdullah/Babar coming at 3, Ifthi coming at 4, Haris/Haseeb at 5, Imad/New allrounder at 6

Theres so much to play around, Pakistan should try to organize more series so we can experiment more. We need to definitely blood both Zaman and that express fast bowler from Zalmi. Also need to play Abrar and see if hes worth utilizing just as a bowler a la kuldeep yadav.

Go crazy please. And send the message across to the media that bilateral results dont matter to us. We are only prepping for worldcup.

Also, i recommend bringing Shehzad back, he can be a good squad option.
 
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