The captaincy shuffle in Pakistan cricket team has become a major talking point in the past few months. Babar Azam had relinquished his responsibility as Pakistan skipper across formats after the end of the 2023 ODI World Cup. After him, Shaheen Afridi was named the captain in T20Is while Shan Masood took over the duties in Test cricket. Under Shaheen, Pakistan lost 4-1 to New Zealand just ahead of the 2024 T20 World Cup and the pacer was stripped of his role, with Babar being reinstated as white-ball captain.

Former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Moin Khan, who was also a part of the 1992 ODI World Cup-winning team, said that removing Shaheen as T20I captain was “unjust” and he should have been given more time.

“Shaheen Afridi has the ability to lead the team and is highly liked by the players. He is an excellent choice for captaincy in T20s. In white-ball cricket, I don’t see anyone else suitable for the role. Removing him from the captaincy was unjust. He is one of the best T20 players, and I’ve noticed his performance has slightly declined since he was removed from the captaincy. How can you expect good performance if you don’t give players confidence? They should be given some time as captain,” Moin told Cricket Pakistan.

Some media reports have claimed that Babar Azam could be replaced by Mohammad Rizwan as white-ball captain of Pakistan.

“A single captain can be appointed for all formats of cricket, but it’s crucial for any player to perform across all formats to achieve this. Whoever becomes captain should have the responsibility for a long term. There is no doubt about Mohammad Rizwan’s abilities; any criticism against him might be due to his age. It’s also important to consider how long he can represent the team if given leadership. Mohammad Rizwan could be a great short-term captain, but you would need to groom a young cricketer to take over in the future. We often appoint captains but fail to prepare a suitable deputy,” Moin added.

Pakistan cricket is not having a good time, be it on or off the ground. While the side suffered an embarrassing 2-0 loss to Bangladesh in the recently-concluded Test series, there were also rumours about the team having cracks in it. A video involving Pakistan captain Shan Masood and star pacer Shaheen Afridi had gone viral on social media after the first Test and the internet speculated that all was not well between the duo. In the video, Shan was standing next to Shaheen during a team hurdle when the latter removed the former’s arms from his shoulders. After Pakistan’s series loss to Bangladesh, Masood has cleared the air on the incident.

“No. There is nothing like that,” said Masood when he was asked to comment on the rumours that he would be stepping down from his role of Pakistan Test captain after the side’s loss to Bangladesh.

“There also came a (rumour/misunderstanding) that I kept my hand on Shaheen’s shoulder and he removed it. He wasn’t angry with me, he actually injured his shoulder by Rana’s delivery. I kept my hand at the same injury point,” said Masood at the press conference after the second Test.

Another video of Masood had gone viral in which he was seen having a heated conversation with Pakistan head coach Jason Gillespie in the dressing room.

Test captain Shan Masood addresses rumored rift with Shaheen Shah Afridi

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— Thakur (@hassam_sajjad) September 3, 2024

Explaining the incident, Masood said, “Then came a (report) that I was fuming at Gillespie. Our second new ball that was 8 overs old went out of the ground after Litton Das hit a six. However, the replacement ball that we got was 18 to 19 overs old. We were saying that we should have been given a new ball rather. I was complaining about that. This is the reason we try to social media less during games.”

Pakistan pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi said his heart is full and he will forever be thankful to his wife Ansha Afridi after the couple welcomed their first child – Aliyaar. Taking to social media, Shaheen, expressed his gratitude to his supporters for extending their wishes on the addition of a new member to his family. “This moment changes everything! My heart is full and my life just got a whole lot better. 24/08/2024 will always be special to us. Welcome to the world my son, Aliyaar Afridi. I will forever be thankful to my wife for all the pain and suffering she had to endure. She is literally the support system of our little family. I am grateful for all the lovely wishes and prayers coming our way. Remember my little family in your prayers,” Shaheen wrote in the post.

Shaheen, who is part of the Pakistan squad for the ongoing Test series against Bangladesh, joined his family in Karachi on Sunday after the hosts endured a 10-wicket heavy defeat in Rawalpindi.

The pace spearhead was part of the playing 11 that failed to keep their winless Test record against Bangladesh. As per Pakistan media reports, the pacer will rejoin the squad before the start of the second Test in Rawalpindi on August 30.

Shaheen engaged to Ansha, the second-eldest daughter of former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi, in 2021. Their nikah was held in a private ceremony in February last year, followed by a week of wedding celebrations and Ansha’s rukhsati in September 2023.