Shaheen Afridi, the Pakistan ODI captain, has finally broken his silence after several reports suggested that Babar Azam might replace him in a few months’ time. When it comes to Pakistani cricket, there is no lack of drama. Over the past few years, the national team captaincy has been decided by a game of musical chairs.
Babar Azam recently became the Test captain of the Pakistan team, replacing Shan Masood at the helm. He managed to walk away with a 1-1 draw against West Indies. Since then, several reports have claimed that Babar Azam only retook the Pakistan Test captaincy on the condition that he also gets the captaincy of all the formats.
However, Shaheen Afridi has stated that for now he is the Pakistan ODI captain.
“For now, I'm the captain,” Shaheen told reporters, as per Geo Super TV.
The left-arm bowler did not go into detail about whether he anticipated staying in the position throughout the World Cup cycle or whether there had been talks about a possible leadership transition inside the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Shaheen Afridi had replaced Mohammad Rizwan as Pakistan ODI captain after the Men in Green failed to reach the Champions Trophy 2025 semis at home. Under Shaheen, the results have been mixed so far, and Pakistan haven't played that many ODIs.
Shaheen also discussed the increasing number of injuries and how they consistently hinder the team's readiness for major competitions. According to him, the National Champions Cup will assist the players in developing a more diverse pool of players.
Shaheen also emphasized how crucial it is to allow players to perform in their preferred and specialized roles.
“Whenever we go to a World Cup, we face a lot of injuries. In case there are any injuries before the World Cup, we will already have players available. The tournament pool will make it easier for us to find replacements. This tournament will allow everyone to play according to their respective positions,” he added.
Shaheen also thinks that given the World Cup is only a year away, Pakistan's preparations will be influenced by their performance in the home tournaments.
“All the players will try to put in good performances. As I said, our focus is on the World Cup. Besides individual performances, the performances and fitness of other players will also be assessed,” he said.
Shaheen Afridi will captain the Pakistan Gold team in the premier Pakistan domestic one-day competition, the Champions Cup. Shadab Khan will captain Pakistan Greens, Saim Ayub will captain Whites, and Sahibzada Farhan will captain Pakistan Blues, respectively.
