Gary Kirsten attends PCB meeting, Babar Azam's captaincy hangs in balance; Gillespie backs Masood as captain: Report – Hindustan Times

The upper echelons of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) reportedly attended a meeting in Lahore ahead of Pakistan’s next assignment. After a disastrous campaign in the 2024 edition of the ICC T20 World Cup, Pakistan are scheduled to host England for a three-match Test series in October. Babar Azam-starrer Pakistan will also play Bangladesh, South Africa and the West Indies this season.
As per the latest developments, senior board officials, national selectors, coach Jason Gillespie, white-ball formats coach Gary Kirsten, and assistant coach Azhar Mahmood attended the PCB meeting in Lahore. Pakistan’s no-show at the T20 World Cup was the focal point of the high-profile meeting.
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“The meeting was held to discuss ways to move forward with a comprehensive blueprint for the national team in red and white ball formats,” a source told PTI. Pakistan coach Gillespie has backed Shan Masood to continue as the Test captain of the Asian side. However, the apex cricket board of Pakistan is yet to decide on Babar’s leadership role.
Under Babar’s leadership, Pakistan suffered a premature exit in the T20 World Cup. Babar’s performance as captain and batter was a major talking point, although the PCB is yet to give a verdict about his captaincy future. “Shan got the support at the meeting to continue as Test captain for the upcoming series against Bangladesh, England, South Africa and the West Indies between August and January,” the source said.
Former Pakistan pacer Sarfraz Nawaz urged the PCB to sack the entire selection committee after showing ‘collective incompetence’ in the ICC event. “The selection committee has worked collectively and should be sacked collectively for their failure and incompetence,” Nawaz said. “I am on record to have written letters to Zaka (Ashraf) and (Mohsin) Naqvi regarding Wahab’s suspected past and his lack of abilities as an administrator. Nobody paid heed to my suggestion,” he added.
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