Picture Credit: X
Former England captain Michael Vaughan took exception to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)’s decision to drop former captain, Babar Azam for the second and third Test of the three-match Test series against England. On Sunday, October 13, Pakistan announced 16-member squad, making some big changes to the side for the final two Tests against England.
With Pakistan opting to rest Babar Azam, along with the pace duo of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah, PCB stated that it had “taken into account the current form and fitness of key players” before leaving out the three players for the remainder of the series.
Absolutely stupid decision: Michael Vaughan slams Pakistan for dropping Babar Azam
Seeing the omission of Babar Azam in the wake of Pakistan’s crushing defeat by an inning and 47 runs in the first Test in Multan, former England captain, Michael Vaughan called it a “stupid decision”. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Vaughan wrote, "So, Pakistan haven’t won in a while... Go 1-nil down in the series and decide to drop the best player in @babarazam258. I guess Pakistan cricket is full of surprises, but this tops the lot... absolutely stupid decision... unless he has asked for a break!!!"
The decision of the newly formed selection committee comes after Babar Azam stepped down from white-ball captaincy following the dismal run of the Pakistan cricket team. The 29-year-old is having a cold streak in international cricket off late and his last 50-plus score in Tests came 18 innings ago, during the Multan Test against New Zealand in December 2022.
At the time of squad announcement, selection panel member Aaqib Javed stated, “Selecting the squad for the upcoming Tests against England has been challenging task for the selectors. We’ve had to carefully consider current player form, the urgency to bounce back in the series, and Pakistan’s demanding 2024-25 international schedule.” He also added that hopefully this break will help players regain fitness and form seeing the busy calendar ahead.
“We are confident that this break from international cricket will help these players regain their fitness, confidence, and composure, ensuring they return in top shape for future challenges. They remain some of our finest talents with much more to contribute to Pakistan cricket. We are fully committed to supporting them during this period so they can come back even stronger,” he further added.
Pakistan squad for second and third Tests
Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Haseebullah (wicketkeeper), Kamran Ghulam, Mehran Mumtaz, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Zahid Mehmood.
