Captaincy Rift Between Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi and Rizwan Blamed for Pakistan’s Poor T20 World Cup 2024 Performance

The Pakistan cricket team has reportedly been divided into three groups, each led by Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Shah Afridi. This division and rift within the team is believed to be a reason behind their poor performance in the T20 World Cup 2024.

According to reports, Shaheen Shah Afridi was unhappy after being removed from the T20 international captaincy of the Pakistan cricket team after leading the team in just one overseas T20I series against New Zealand.

On the other hand, Mohammad Rizwan was dissatisfied as he was consistently overlooked for the captaincy role.

“There are three groups in the team, one led by Babar Azam, the second by Shaheen Shah Afridi, and the third by Mohammad Rizwan. Adding to this mix the return of seniors like Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim created a recipe for a World Cup disaster,” a source close to the team told PTI.

“The return of Imad and Amir added to the confusion as it was difficult for Babar to get any worthwhile performances from both of them. They had not played top-level domestic or international cricket for a long time, except in franchise-based leagues.”

“There were even instances where some players were not talking to each other, and a few of them even tried to appease all the group leaders in the team,” added the source.

A senior PCB official said that Chairman Mohsin Naqvi was well aware of the team’s condition even before the World Cup and had been briefed by his right-hand man, national selector and senior manager, Wahab Riaz.

Now, Naqvi has announced that the Pakistan cricket team will undergo a major overhaul after the T20 World Cup 2024. There are reports that many players will be dropped from the team.