Salman Ali Agha set to be removed as captain of Pakistan team

Salman Ali Agha is set to be removed as captain of the Pakistan team regardless of the outcome of their campaign in the ongoing T20 World Cup, while some other senior players might have also played their last tournament for the national side.

According to a reliable source in the Pakistan Cricket Board, chairman Mohsin Naqvi is “unhappy” at the way the team’s campaign has turned out in the mega event. “Naqvi is not happy at all because this time he was assured by the selectors, team management and his close aides in the board that the team was set to do well in the World Cup,” the source said on Saturday.

He said that Naqvi had made up his mind to sack Salman as the T20 captain and will also have a candid discussion with head coach Mike Hesson and selectors on the future of some players.

“Salman, Babar Azam, Usman Khan and a few others will probably see curtains on their T20 international career after the World Cup,” the source said.

The names of Shadab Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi are being considered to replace Salman as captain.

He also narrated how Hesson had even before the World Cup, told Naqvi that after the event, Pakistan needed to bring in and establish some younger players and move ahead with the requirements of modern-day T20 cricket.

“So, after the World Cup, you can expect major changes in the Pakistan T20 set-up,” the source said. Babar, a veteran of 145 T20 internationals, has probably played his last T20 game unless he does something dramatic against Sri Lanka and thereafter in the knockouts if Pakistan manage to qualify.