PCB set to retain Babar Azam as captain till 2023 World Cup

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) are all set to confirm that Babar Azam will stay on as captain at least till the 2023 World Cup later this year in India. PCB chairman Najam Sethi had already offered his support to the star batter despite inconsistent results.

The 28-year-old's captaincy credentials took a massive hit in the last few months as Pakistan failed to win a Test on home soil last year and were beaten 3-0 by England. The Men in Green also lost the T20I series to England and the 50-over series to New Zealand.

A few days ago, Sethi addressed a press conference and urged the media and cricketing circles to refrain from creating a controversy over Babar's captaincy. He said, as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo:

"For months media and cricketing circles have been discussing the pros and cons of retaining Babar Azam as captain in all formats of the game. I have subsequently publicly stated this position. In the final analysis, my decision will be subject to the success or failure of the status quo."

"I will also be guided by what the Selectors and Director Cricket Ops and head coach have to say going forward. I expect they will be in the best position to advise me. Therefore, we should support Babar and not make the matter controversial in the interests of the national team."

The right-hander had a prolific 2022 across formats, bagging the ICC Men's ODI Cricketer of the Year Award while being named the captain of the ODI team. He also won the ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year award.

"What I saw with Babar Azam, the first thing that impressed me was his hands" - Mickey Arthur

Mickey Arthur, Najam Sethi, and Haroon Rasheed. (Credits: Twitter)

Mickey Arthur, who has joined the men's team as a director on a part-time basis, stated that he had no doubts about the skipper's ability to become the number one batter. Arthur said in a press conference:

"What I saw with Babar Azam, the first thing that impressed me was his hands. When you look at a young batsman, it’s the speed of his hands that gets you excited. The key to backing him was to give him opportunities to succeed.

"I knew that he was going to become a key part of a very successful Pakistan team. I always thought that he was going to become the number one batsman in the world."

Pakistan are currently engaged in a five-game T20 series against New Zealand.