Pakistan stalwart Babar Azam finally paid the price of his poor form, with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) selection committee deciding to drop form the squad for the second Test against England. Babar, who has been in the line of fire over inconsistent performances for more than a year, was backed by his skipper Shan Masood to bounce back, being the team’s “best batter”, but he found no place in the XI for the second Test. In a video that has surfaced on social media, Babar could be seen engaging in an intense chat with head coach Jason Gillespie before being comforted by him and assistant coach Azar Mahmood.

Even captain Shan Masood could be seen in the frame as a distraught Babar was being consoled by the coaches. Here’s the video:

Looks like Jason Glipssie, Azhar Mahmood and Shan Masood are not happy with the exclusion of Babar Azam… pic.twitter.com/9EOekbTrR8

— Hassan Abbasian (@HassanAbbasian) October 13, 2024

Though it isn’t yet understood what the exact matter of the conversation was, it did look like Babar wasn’t happy with the development. But, he did seem to have gotten the reassurances needed from the coaches.

Babar isn’t the only player to have been dropped from the team. Marquee pace duo of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah have also been shown the exit door.

Javed, one of the selectors in the newly-appointed committee by the Pakistan Cricket Board, is hopeful that this break from the game will help the three star players rediscover their lost form.

“We are confident that this break from international cricket will help these players regain their fitness, confidence, and composure, ensuring they return in top shape for future challenges,” he said.

“They remain some of our finest talents with much more to contribute to Pakistan cricket. We are fully committed to supporting them during this period so they can come back even stronger,” he added.

Following speculation going viral on social media which suggested that the families of players and the team’s coaching staff traveled with the team on Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) expenditure, assistant coach Azhar Mahmood has released a statement stating he will be “pursuing legal advice against those responsible for making these false allegations”. “This culture of falsely accusing and misleading people to believe a false narrative is now getting ridiculous and dangerous. Speaking without evidence and misconstruing facts is a criminal offence, and those engaging in such behaviour will be dealt with through legal action,” wrote Azhar Mahmood on X, formerly known as Twitter.

My Statement on False Allegations & Legal Action. pic.twitter.com/UQiWoOFZzP

— Azhar Mahmood (@AzharMahmood11) June 22, 2024

The men in green had a lackluster T20 World Cup which saw the side crash out of the group stage of the tournament as they were pipped by hosts USA in the points table. This is just one of many controversies brewing around the Pakistan side who are under the microscope after their World Cup group stage exit.

“Pursuing an increase in followers and media attention by spreading falsehoods is downright unacceptable. I will be pursuing legal advice against those responsible for making these false allegations towards me and my family, and strict action will be taken accordingly. We will not be discussing this matter further on social media. I urge everyone to avoid engaging with or entertaining these harmful narratives as it is essential to put an end to such behavior in our media culture,” he concluded.

This follows just days after Pakistan media reported that captain Babar Azam will also take legal action against former cricketers and YouTubers who have accused the number one ranked ODI batsman in the world of misconduct during the course of the tournament.

Pakistan cricket team fast bowler Shaheen Afridi allegedly misbehaved with head coach Gary Kirsten as well as other members of the support staff during the Ireland-England tour as well as the T20 World Cup 2024, according to a report. The report claimed that Shaheen behaved badly with Kirsten and Azhar Mahmood but no action was taken against him by the managers accompanying the team during the competitions. “Shaheen misbehaved with the coaches and management during recent tours but no action was taken by the team managers on the pacer’s inappropriate behaviour,” sources told Geo News.

“Maintaining discipline in the team was the responsibility of the managers which is why it is being investigated why action was not taken against Shaheen despite misbehaving,” the report added.

According to the report, players in the Pakistan cricket team are also under probe after coaches complained about lobbying and non-seriousness of the players in the recent competitions.

“The board is also probing players who have lobbies and the benefit that is being gained from it. Sources have further said that the team’s coaches have complained to the PCB chairman about the non-seriousness of players and disciplinary violations in recent tours,” the report further stated.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Cricket Board has sacked former Test players Wahab Riaz and Abdul Razzaq from its selection committee in the wake of the team’s disastrous T20 World Cup campaign last month.

Wahab and Razzaq were a part of a committee, which had no chairman and included the national team captain, head coach and a data analyst.

“The Pakistan Cricket Board today confirmed that it has notified Abdul Razzaq and Wahab Riaz that their services will no longer be required in the national selection committee setup,” read a statement from the PCB.

Razzaq was a member of both the men’s and women’s selection committee, while Wahab was a member of the men’s panel. “The PCB will provide further updates on the selection committee’s composition in due course,” the statement from PCB read.

(With PTI inputs)

Pakistan men’s team assistant coach Azhar Mahmood has said that those engaging in false allegations and narratives targeting his family “will be dealt with through legal action.” Pakistan’s T20 World Cup woeful campaign ended on a heartbreaking note. The Babar Azam-led side crashed out of the tournament in the group stage. Mahmood stated that he is upset to hear such claims that are false and baseless. “I have heard some false allegations and narratives circulating on social media and other media platforms. I categorically state that these allegations are entirely baseless and false, and it is extremely upsetting to hear them,” Mahmood wrote on X.

My Statement on False Allegations & Legal Action. pic.twitter.com/UQiWoOFZzP

— Azhar Mahmood (@AzharMahmood11) June 22, 2024

The Pakistan assistant coach urged people to refrain from engaging with such narratives. He even stated that he would take legal action against those who are responsible for spreading such narratives.

“This culture of falsely accusing and misleading people to believe a false narrative is now getting ridiculous and dangerous. Speaking without evidence and misconstruing facts is a criminal offence, and those engaging in such behaviour will be dealt with through legal action,” he wrote.

“Pursuing an increase in followers and media attention by spreading falsehoods is downright unacceptable. I will be pursuing legal advice against those responsible for making these false allegations towards me and my family, and strict action will be taken accordingly. We will not be discussing this matter further on social media. I urge everyone to avoid engaging with or entertaining these harmful narratives as it is essential to put an end to such behaviour in our media culture,” he concluded.

Earlier, while citing sources, Geo News reported that skipper Babar Azam was also likely to take legal action against YouTubers and former cricketers who accused him of ‘misconduct’ during their campaign in the ongoing T20 World Cup.

Sources informed Geo News that during Pakistan’s campaign, a social media campaign was used to “target” Babar, which made him feel “disheartened.”

It was also reported that evidence related to statements made by YouTubers and former cricketers was being collected by the Pakistan Cricket Board’s legal department.