Pakistan Fans Blast PCB For Replacing Sarfaraz Ahmed With Azhar Ali As Test Captain

Sarfaraz Ahmed was removed as the captain of Pakistan's Test and Twenty20 International (T20I) teams, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in a press release on Friday. Senior batsman Azhar Ali will replace Sarfaraz Ahmed as Test skipper, while Babar Azam will lead the T20I side. Sarfaraz Ahmed's ignominy was doubled as not only did he lose his captaincy but was also axed from the Test and T20I sides. PCB's move to appoint Azhar Ali as the new Test captain though has not gone down too well with fans on Twitter accusing the country's board as being "biased" and labelling it "corrupt".

Azhar ali out from cricket quite some time & appoint as captain look at his analysis for last 5 matches .shame on pcb , no karachii player in cricket team . First appoint misbah & waqar & after that their selected captain , this is how punjab courrept board work .

- Shariq Hassan (@ShariqHassan19) October 18, 2019

Shame on PCB n Misbah sarfraz should remain captain of T20

- M K@$H!F N!@Z! (@MKASHIFNIAZI1) October 18, 2019

It's a bias decision , why Azhar ali appoint as test captain courrept decision .it's a punjab cricket board .

- Shariq Hassan (@ShariqHassan19) October 18, 2019

Sarfaraz ko dokha diya misbah ne

- Baloch khan (@balachdestiny) October 18, 2019

Azhar Ali bad decision.. Babar Azam should be caption in All format

- Saud Amjad (@saudamjad412) October 18, 2019

Sarfaraz has been made the Scapegoat for the Failure of our Batsmen/Team for last few years,including Babar in T-20 format.When there was pressure on Babar he could not perform against SL!The pressure will be much more on Babar & Azhar to Perform Like Before & Win Matches Too!

- Asad Baig (@asadbaig1) October 18, 2019

Sarfaraz out despite of highest runs in SL series.

Shame on you PCB aka Punjab Cricket Board

- Muhammad Noman Saeed (@SaeedNoman) October 18, 2019

Azhar Ali - Who paid money to get him back in - Or azhar ali paid someone to come back. What happened

- Maverick (@thefnfcompany) October 18, 2019

Shameful politics continues in PCB, dark days for Pakistan cricket looming. Same faces coming back to haunt again. #sayno2misbah

- Imad Uddin Chishti (@imadchishti) October 18, 2019

Pakistan had suffered a humiliating whitewash at home against Sri Lanka. But despite that loss, Sarfaraz Ahmed's departure will come as a shock to many. The wicketkeeper-batsman had led Pakistan to the number one spot in T20I rankings, winning 11 series along the way.

Sarfaraz Ahmed also topped the batting chart with 67 runs across the series.

Sarfaraz Ahmed congratulated both new captains.

"My good wishes are with Azhar Ali, Babar Azam and the Pakistan cricket team, and I hope they will continue to grow stronger and stronger," said Sarfaraz Ahmed.

Azhar previously skippered Pakistan in one Test and 31 one-day internationals between 2015 and 2017, losing 18 and winning 21 with one no result.

"There is no bigger honour than to captain the Pakistan national cricket team in the pinnacle format of the game. I feel humbled, excited and privileged, and with the support of the team, look forward to justifying the faith that has been entrusted upon me for the World Test Championship," Pakistan's new Test captain said in a PCB press release.

"Sarfaraz Ahmed has done an excellent job in transforming raw talent into experienced players and I now look forward to inspiring those skillful players in our endeavours to collectively achieve our World Test Championship objectives and beyond.

"These are exciting times in Pakistan cricket with a new team management. As a captain, I feel comfortable that there will be number of knowledgeable people in the hut who I can rely for advice and guidance," Azhar added.

Topics mentioned in this article

Pakistan Cricket Team Sarfaraz Ahmed Azhar Ali Babar Azam Pakistan Cricket Board Cricket