Kevin Pietersen pokes fun at Pakistan captain Babar Azam

BIRMINGHAM: Former England captain Kevin Pietersen has taken a sarcastic swipe at Pakistan’s frequent changes ahead of the third Test against England, joking that Babar Azam could face a “v v v v long interview” when discussing the team.

Referring to the number of changes, Pietersen took to social media platform X and joked that interviews with Babar could become extremely lengthy as the Pakistan captain would repeatedly be asked about alterations to the team.

He then added another tongue-in-cheek suggestion about the toss taking place a day earlier.

“When a captain is interviewed before every game, the interviewer asks about changes in their team. Could be a v v v v long interview for my buddy, Babar! Maybe the toss should start the night before??” Pietersen wrote.

Pietersen’s remarks came after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) made sweeping changes to the Test set-up following the team’s heavy defeat in the second Test at Lord’s.

The board released seven players from the squad and named their replacements for the final Test of the three-match series.

The coaching set-up has also undergone a major overhaul, with red-ball head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul released from their respective roles.

White-ball head coach Mike Hesson and bowling coach Ashley Noffke have been tasked with overseeing the team for the final Test.

For the unversed, Sarfaraz was appointed Pakistan’s red-ball head coach by the PCB on April 18, ahead of the team’s two-match Test tour of Bangladesh. Pakistan suffered a 2-0 series whitewash in his first assignment in charge.

Pakistan subsequently toured the West Indies for a two-match Test series, which ended 1-1.

They are currently trailing 2-0 in the ongoing three-match Test series against England, with the final Test set to be played at Edgbaston in Birmingham from September 9 to 13.