The 50-over cricket World Cup is now less than four months away but the national team’s preparations are in absolute disarray. The recent One-Day International (ODI) whitewash to Australia has deflated both the players and the fans alike, while the captaincy conundrum that arose on the eve of the final ODI has further undermined the team’s stature. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman, Shahryar Khan, has in his brief stint, so far, emphasised consistency in policymaking and once again, reposed faith in Misbahul Haq’s captaincy for the ODI team after a few days of speculation on his future. This happened after Misbah decided to ‘sit out’ the last ODI against Australia.
Shahid Afridi, who led the team in the last game, opened a Pandora’s box, by asking the board to name either him or Misbah the captain to put an end to the uncertainty. In response, Mr Khan confirmed Misbah as captain at a press conference. He is, however, set to have his trust in Misbah’s abilities severely tested in the days leading up to the World Cup. Misbah has declared that he will only lead the team for the five ODIs against New Zealand in December if he performs in the longer format of the game.
Misbah’s form with the bat and his body language hinted at his demoralised mental state during the recent ODIs. In such a scenario, can he really redeem himself in a short span of five Tests that will precede the ODIs against New Zealand? If Pakistan do badly in the five-day variety too, Misbah would be under even more scrutiny. The PCB needs to keep a back-up plan ready if he capitulates and opts to stay out of the ODI team. However, the ostensible back-up captain, Afridi, is not in great form either and it remains to be seen if his captaincy, if needed, can change Pakistan’s fortunes around. For now, the dust might appear to have settled, but it speaks volumes about the team management’s competence that the captaincy for the World Cup — just a short time away — is still not a settled matter.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 18th, 2014.
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Afridi can never become captain on the basis of his performance and/or consistency. He is a handy and utility player but can't be awarded captaincy. The reason I think of for making him captain is lack of other options. And yes, his aggressive approach might be good for a captain but performance is even more important.
If you need just aggressiveness then you might ask a soldier to captain your team....
Afridi is distracting, rude, crude and media hungry. He never applies himself and a bad influence on youngsters. He can never lead let alone by example or being a role model. We should have a more balanced and polished leader not one who loves to hear himself talk.
Afridi will keep disrupting the team as his goal is to become the captain. Afridi must be kicked out of the team ASAP. This should have been done years ago in my humble opinion. Afridi only plays for himself and never for the team.
Afridi need to go. His ego is too big for the team. He does not believe in teamwork. and undermines Misbah, [who is a mediocre captain]. Afridi thinks he is God's gift to PCB. And Najma Soothy agrees.