‘Privilege to Witness True Teamwork Under Your Leadership’: Afridi Pens Heart-warming Post for Babar

Shaheen Afridi talked about the Pakistan team being a ‘brotherhood’ after taking over captaincy duties in the shortest format of the game. Pakistan are still recovering from a horrendous campaign in the ODI World Cup 2023 which saw them getting knocked out of the tournament. Following the humiliation in India, Babar stepped down as captain from all three formats. Pakistan Cricket made some quick decisions and named Shaheen Afridi the new captain in T20Is and Shan Masood in Tests.

No decision was made for the ODI leadership as Pakistan aren’t scheduled to play a game in that format until November 2024. While talking about his new role, Shaheen expressed his gratitude on microblogging site X.

“I am honoured and thrilled to lead our national T20 cricket team…Our success lies in unity, trust and relentless effort. We are not just a team; we are a brotherhood, a family. Together, we rise!”

Pakistan headed into the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 as one of the favourites, ranking as the second-best team in the ODI format after India. The team started well with consecutive victories against the Netherlands and Sri Lanka but then suffered four losses on the trot.

Failing to make the top four, Pakistan crashed out of the event leading to severe backlash from former cricketers and the media with many demanding a complete restructure of the country’s cricketing set-up

Babar Azam soon announced his decision to step down as the captain from all three formats on X. In a heartbreaking post the now-former skipper said, “Today, I am stepping down as the captain of Pakistan in all formats. It’s a difficult decision but I feel it is the right time for this call.” However, Babar made sure that his fans knew that he wasn’t leaving the team. He further said, “I will continue to represent Pakistan as a player in all three formats. I am here to support the new captain and the team.”

In another post on X, Shaheen Afridi paid tribute to his former captain. He talked about Babar’s leadership skills while saying that he expects the player to continue breaking multiple records in cricket.

“@babarazam: under your exemplary leadership, it’s been a privilege to witness true teamwork and camaraderie. Your forefront leadership and commitment to team unity and collective success are commendable. Looking forward to seeing you break more batting records, In sha Allah.”

Pakistan aren’t scheduled to play another game until next month. They will be playing a three-match Test series against Australia from December 14 to January 7.

Winning the series could prove to be a major boost to the Pakistani squad’s morale while solidifying Shan Masood’s role as Test captain. Shaheen Afridi, on the other hand, won’t be captaining the squad until mid-January when they will be playing New Zealand in a five-match T20I series.