NEW DELHI: The fact that the seasoned
Babar Azam
will captain Pakistan at the Twenty20 World Cup disguises the significant transformations that Pakistani cricket has undergone in the past 18 months.
The
Pakistan Cricket Board
has had four chairmen since Babar's team lost to England in the
T20 World Cup
final in November 2022. The selection panel has also undergone a complete renovation, and the experiment of having
Shaheen Shah Afridi
as captain was promptly abandoned.
Only a few weeks before the June 1-29 World Cup in the United States and the Caribbean, a new limited-overs head coach joined the team in England.
To top it all off, Pakistan will be the final team to finalize its 15-man World Cup roster as it keeps trying different lineups.
There is a strategy in place for success, and Babar is asking fans to exercise patience.
When Zaka Ashraf took over as PCB director last year, Babar resigned as captain of the all-formats team after Pakistan was eliminated from the 50-over World Cup in India.
However, Mohsin Naqvi, the fourth PCB chairman in less than 14 months, restored him to the T20 captaincy ahead of the home series against New Zealand in April, following Afridi's 1-4 series defeat in New Zealand.
Pakistan hopes that competing in the
Caribbean Premier League
will help them in the West Indies. All-arounder
Imad Wasim
and fast bowler
Mohammad Amir
came out of international retirement.
During a four-match series in England that both teams are using to prepare for the World Cup, South African
Gary Kirsten
, who was named head coach last month, will get to know the Pakistani players up close.
Pakistan's tournament preparations have been impacted by all of these off-field events.
It lost the away series against New Zealand severely, the home series against the Black Caps was a 2-2 draw, and the T20 series against Afghanistan ended in a 1-2 loss. A shocking defeat to Ireland in Dublin was followed by two straight victories and a 2-1 series outcome.
And so capricious Pakistan has a strong history in the T20 World Cup, making it a squad to watch as it enters another global competition. It has advanced to the semifinals three times and participated in three finals, taking home the title in 2009.
The players have already responded favorably to one of Kirsten's coaching suggestions.
"Gary told us, don't play for the name on the back of your jersey but for the badge in front of your shirt," Afridi told a PCB podcast. "And that stayed with me."
With players like Afridi, the fully recovered Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, and Amir, their depth in fast bowling can threaten any opposition. But heading into the England series, Pakistan's top-order batting was still in flux. After selectors chose to split up the productive T20 opening duo of Babar and
Mohammad Rizwan
, left-hander Saim Ayub has yet to produce in his role.
Babar has come under fire for failing to increase the scoring pace during the T20 power play, especially when batting first. While other teams have often surpassed 200, Pakistan has primarily targeted totals in the 170-180 range.
Although India and Pakistan haven't played each other in a bilateral series in more than ten years, their matches in the ICC tournaments always get sizable TV audiences.
The freshly constructed 34,000-seat Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York, which will be the focus of interest for South Asian communities, will host a group match between India and Pakistan on June 9.
It is anticipated that both sides would progress to the Super 8 round from a group that includes the US, Canada, and Ireland, the tournament co-hosts.
As captain, Babar has come close of winning the title twice, falling short against eventual winners Australia in the semifinals of 2021 and England in the Melbourne final the following year.
And for that, Babar will make history by being the first player to captain a nation in three consecutive T20 World Cups. If his Pakistan squad makes it to the final match on June 29 in Barbados, he'll be hoping for becoming third time fortunate.
(With AP inputs)
English (US) ·