Sarfaraz Ahmed has been sacked as Pakistan captain from the Test and T20I formats, a Pakistan Cricket Board press release announced on Friday, 18 October.
The wicket-keeper batsman has also been dropped from the squad for both formats, a consequence of his indifferent form. The move comes just ahead of the tour of Australia, where Pakistan will three T20Is and two Tests, and just a year removed from the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2020. Between the two events, Pakistan will also host Sri Lanka and Bangladesh for two Tests each, and the latter for three T20Is.
Sarfaraz will be replaced by top-order batsman Azhar Ali as Test captain, while 25-year-old batsman Babar Azam will take charge of the T20I side and remain in charge until next year’s World Cup.
