'Mickey, selection committee will decide on Babar's captaincy,' Najam Sethi
Mickey Arthur is set to resume his duties as national team director
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) management committee chairman Najam Sethi said Mickey Arthur, who is set to become national team director, and selection committee will decide Babar Azam's captaincy future.
In his latest interview to local cricket website, Sethi has once again clarified that Babar is a wonderful player, his captaincy is something the team management will decide in the future.
"For now, we have retained Babar as a captain because he is our main player. His captaincy is often discussed on media, we have nothing to do with it," he said.
"Yes, I listened to a couple of thoughts on media. Some said there should be two different captains and some said different captain in each format. Selection committee also discussed this thing but it is premature to talk about this,
"I have also consulted Mickey on this, he also said that let Babar continue. For New Zealand series, he is our captain and we should back him. Later on, Mickey and selection committee will decide on captaincy," he explained his version on the matter.
It must be noted here that PCB head has the final authority to bring a change in captaincy. Recently, Sethi tweeted that he met Babar and gave him confidence for home New Zealand tour where he resumed his regular captaincy role after resting during Afghanistan T20I series that concluded in late March.
The two-time PCB chairman also emphasised on taking Babar in loop before making any decision. "He is our star player. We need to talk to him first and let him make his decision in case of any change," he shared.
"Obviously, his performance matters here. If he wins as captain, nobody can remove him. He is our performer and at this moment, we just need to support him," he stated.
To a query about player power in the team, Sethi said he has no idea about it. "After I took charge, I haven't seen any player power sort of thing here. I don't know about previous set-up," he said.
"Players are united, they play like a group which is a very good sign," he concluded.
After the conclusion of Afghanistan T20I series, which Pakistan lost by 2-1, stand-in skipper Shadab Khan gave comments about the importance of senior players in the team and it sparked controversy on social media.
