Pakistan’s new Test captain Shan Masood reacted positively at being called ‘Qurbani ka Bakra’ (sacrificial lamb) after he took over the reins from Babar Azam ahead of the tough 3-Test tour of Australia beginning in December.
Pakistan will play the first Test in Perth, the second in Melbourne, and the third Test in Sydney. Some have seen the appointment as him having drawn the short straw, as he faces up to the toughest task in Pakistan cricket - leading a tour of Australia, where Pakistan have been whitewashed on each of their last five tours.
With the board's future tied to the country's general elections in February, a loss in Australia and a change in administration might just as well result in Masood's dismissal. Masood, however, elected not to perceive himself as that "sacrificial lamb" less than 24 hours before the team's departure to Australia.
"We see it as an opportunity. When you haven't done something before in your history, then you are allowed to go out there and try to change it. So that's what we're trying to do, to get a positive result for Pakistan and in this World Test Championship," Masood said in his first official press conference as Test captain.
"And as far as being qurbani ka bakra (sacrificial lamb) is concerned, the captaincy, playing as a player in the side, these are all temporary things at the end of the day. As long as you are in that place or seat, you should relish the opportunity, enjoy it and try and take responsibility, and give your best ability to the team,” he added.
Masood has previous experience of captaincy as he led Multan Sultans in the PSL, Derbyshire in the T20 Blast, and Yorkshire in the County Championship just last season. But his real leadership acumen will be tested against the reigning Test and ODI champions, who are a different beast on their soil.
"I'm fortunate that I've had such opportunities along the way in my career. I've said before that when I became captain of Multan Sultans under Andy Flower, that was a big turning point in my career as a person and player.
I look back and reflect on that whenever I go through ups and downs as an experience that has helped me as a cricketer. Then at Derbyshire and then the Yorkshire project which was quite a challenging one because of the stuff that was happening there. So, to take that captaincy along, off the field and on the field the issues gave me some experience and hopefully I can use that for Pakistan,” he added.
(PCB inputs)
