‘Without him, the Pakistan team…’ – PCB chairman’s take on Babar Azam’s captaincy

Pakistan skipper Babar Azam is in deep trouble as under his reign, Pakistan lost the Test series 0-1 against Australia and then got whitewashed in a three-match Test series against England. For the first time in the history of cricket, Pakistan lost four matches in a row in the format. When questioned about his thoughts on Babar’s captaincy, the new Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) referred to him as a “son of the soil.”

Ramiz Raja, a former PCB chairman, earlier expressed his unconditional support for Babar and that he couldn’t even imagine life without the star batter. “I haven’t thought about it because I never imagined a life without Babar Azam,” Raja had said.

We’ll take a decision that is in the better interest of the game: Najam Sethi

Najam Sethi, the person who took over after Ramiz Raja as chairman during a press conference, was informed of Ramiz Raja’s perspective on Babar’s captaincy by a reporter who questioned it. “Babar Azam is the star of Pakistan. Without him, the Pakistan team would be without its son of the soil. He is in our hearts and will always remain there,” Sethi said in response.

When questioned about the issue, Sethi responded that he needed to discuss it with other board members before making any decision. “I will listen to advise and recommendations from the people I appoint as I don’t make cricketing decisions by myself,” he said.

A question regarding the new PCB chairman’s opinions on the Asia Cup controversy was also posed. He implied that the board would comply with all requests from the government. “We will obey whatever the government would suggest to us and we will seek the government’s advice when the time arrives, similar to the last time I was the chairman,” he stated.

“As far as the Asia Cup is concerned, I will go to ACC (Asian Cricket Council) and see what the situation is and we’ll take a decision that is in the better interest of the game. We have to see what the other board’s position is, we have to play cricket with everyone, and we will not take any step which can cause any isolation,” concluded Sethi.