T20 World Cup 2024: Shaheen Shah Afridi likely to quit T20 captaincy

Shaheen Shah Afridi (Pic: File Pic)

As Shaheen Shah Afridi was not involved in the discussions regarding Pakistan cricket and his future in the shortest format as captain, the fast bowler has made up his mind to step down from the captaincy.

A source close to Afridi said that the pacer was very disappointed following that he was not even concerned even once by the PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi or other selectors about their future plans or appointment of coaches is concerned.

"Shaheen is rightly upset as being the national T20 captain he expected that even if the board/selectors wanted to remove him they have the decency to also inform him for the reasons behind this and keep him in the loop about everything," the source said.

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The source said Shaheen was disappointed that he was not kept in the loop as the PCB chief held discussions with the national selectors and Babar Azam this week to discuss the T20 World Cup 2024, appointment of coaches and captaincy.

The T20 World Cup 2024 is all set to begin in June and will be hosted in the West Indies and the USA.

"Shaheen believes that if the Board wants to remove him they should have informed him by now as he is even willing to step down himself. In fact, now he has been advised by some of his close ones to do this and step away from all the chaos and confusion being caused by the Board," the source said.

Shaheen Shah Afridi was named as the captain after the ODI World Cup in India, last year when Zaka Ashraf was heading the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

Shaheen's appointment was made based on his ability to lead the Lahore Qalandars franchise in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) to two successive titles.

But after being named captain, Shaheen lost the T20 series in New Zealand 1-4 and also couldn't repeat his magic with Qalandars as they finished at the bottom of the table in the recent PSL.

The pacer who is currently in the training camp in Kakul is expected to hold frank talks with senior players such as Babar Azam, Mohammed Rizwan, Shadab Khan and Fakhar Zaman on captaincy and then make the final call.

(With PTI Inputs)