Pakistan selectors name pacer Shaheen national men’s ODI captain

By Special Correspondent

LAHORE: Pakistan cricket selectors on Monday named fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi national men’s One-day International (ODI) team captain. The national side’s pace spearhead will lead Pakistan in the upcoming three-match series against South Africa. Shaheen replaces Mohammad Rizwan as the Pakistan ODI skipper after the wicket-keeper led the team during a disastrous ICC Champions Trophy campaign before series losses in New Zealand and the West Indies. Rizwan, handed captaincy in 2024, had led the team to series wins in South Africa, Australia and Zimbabwe in his early days as captain, however. But the recent failures apparently were a decisive enough factor for the Pakistan Cricket Board to sack Rizwan.

For Shaheen, it’s going to be a second stint as the Pakistan captain, the left-armer having been snubbed after a short spell — five T20Is against New Zealand — at the helm after replacing Babar Azam in late 2023 following Pakistan’s dismal World Cup campaign. The 25-year-old, who has been captaining Pakistan Super League side Lahore Qalandars for the last few years, seems to be Pakistan white-ball head coach Mike Hesson’s pick as the team’s leader going into the build-up for the 2027 World Cup.  “Shaheen’s appointment for the upcoming series was finalised today following a meeting held in Islamabad, which was attended by white-ball head coach Mike Hesson, Director High Performance Aqib Javed and members of the selection committee,” a short press release by the PCB said.

Shaheen has represented Pakistan in 66 ODIs and 92 T20Is, taking a combined 249 wickets. In 32 Tests, excluding the ongoing second Test against South Africa at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Shaheen has claimed 120 wickets. The PCB regime, led by Mohsin Naqvi since February 2024, has chopped and changed captains repeatedly. It first removed Shaheen as captain to bring back Babar Azam as white-ball skipper in the first half of 2024. Later, Babar, owing to the team’s poor performance in the T20 World Cup, decided to step down, after which Mohammad Rizwan was given the reins of the white-ball team.