In an unforeseen call, star batter Babar Azam stepped down as the captain of the white-ball teams of Pakistan. Babar took to social media on Wednesday to announce resigning from the post in ODIs and T20Is, adding that he had informed the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the team management of his decision in September.
Babar said captaincy added a ‘significant workload’ and that by stepping down, he would channel his energy into contributing to the team with the bat. The star batter’s decision came shortly after he slipped out of the top 10 in the International Cricket Council Test rankings. Babar has been going through a rare lean patch in international cricket.
“Dear Fans, I am sharing some news with you today. I have decided to resign as captain of the Pakistan men’s cricket team, effective as of my notification to the PCB and Team Management last month,” Babar said in a late-night post on X, formerly Twitter.
It is the second time in less than a year that Babar has resigned from the captaincy of the senior national men’s team. Babar stepped down as the captain of all three formats after Pakistan’s dismal performance in the ODI World Cup in India in October-November last month.
However, Babar was reinstated as the captain earlier this year following a change in the leadership of the PCB. Shaheen Afridi, who was appointed as Babar’s replacement in T20Is, was sacked after just one T20I series at the helm, earlier this year in New Zealand.
Babar’s stepping down comes after Pakistan’s dismal show in the T20 World Cup in 2024 that India went on to win. Pakistan were eliminated in the group stage after losing to India and the USA. Pakistan had to deal with rumours of rift in the dressing room throughout their campaign as newly-appointed head coach Gary Kirsten’s first assignment with the team ended on a miserable note.
