Sarfaraz Ahmed breaks silence after being booted as Pakistan skipper

In a big blow to Pakistani cricketer Sarfaraz Ahmed, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has taken away captaincy from the wicket-keeper batsman in Tests and T20. Sarfraz Ahmed had been under immense pressure after Pakistan’s continued failures since the Champions Trophy success in 2017. Under the leadership of Sarfaraz, Pakistan had suffered consecutive failures, including at the World Cup. The change was thus foreseen.

However, the PCB has officially confirmed Azhar Ali as the Test and Babar Azam T20I captain. In an official statement released by the PCB, Sarfaraz Ahmed extended his good wishes to Azhar Ali and Babar Azam and said,

 "It has been an honor to lead Pakistan at the highest level. I want to thank all my colleagues, coaches, and selectors who have helped me in this journey. My good wishes are with Azhar Ali, Babar Azam, and the Pakistan cricket team, and I hope they will continue to grow stronger and stronger.”

READ: Dream11 HB W VS MS W WBBL: Team prediction and squad details

Sarfaraz's Poor Spell  

Under the captaincy of Sarfaraz, Pakistan was defeated 3–0 in the home series by Sri Lanka's novice team. Pakistan was eliminated from the league round in the World Cup and since then questions were being raised about the captaincy of Sarfaraz Ahmed.  The fact that Sri Lanka did not have 10 first team players and yet completely outplayed Pakistan seemed to have sealed Sarfaraz's fate. Former cricketers including the likes of Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Akhtar, Aamir Sohail have criticized Sarfaraz’s fitness and his ability to lead the team from the front. Sarfaraz was accused of having 'burgers and pizzas' ahead of Pakistan's World Cup encounter against India, wherein Pakistan lost by 89 runs. 

The 32-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfaraz took over the reins after Misbah-ul-Haq retired. Misbah is now the head coach and chief selector of Pakistan's men's team. 

READ: Dream11 ASW VS MRW WBBL 2019: Team, prediction and squad updates

Misbah-ul-Haq laments 'one-sided' series loss

After Pakistan’s humiliating 0-3 defeat in the T20 series against a second-string Sri Lanka team, new head coach Misbah-ul-Haq expressed his displeasure over the country’s cricket system. He also lamented the lack of talent at the domestic level. Furthermore, he added that Sri Lanka had outclassed Pakistan in all three departments of the game. He conceded that it was a one-sided series.  

READ: Ind vs SA third Test: India eye clean sweep, SA aim for points

READ:  Yuvraj Singh in final negotiations to join Abu Dhabi T10 League