Ahmed takes over

ISLAMABAD. — Pakistan’s Cricket Board yesterday announced Sarfraz Ahmed as new captain of the T20 team after Shahid Afridi stepped down following his side’s humiliating early exit from the World Twenty20.

A statement on the PCB website described Ahmed — who led the Quetta Gladiators to the final in Pakistan’s first-ever franchise-based T20 league in February — as a “natural choice” for the position.

“I spoke to Sarfraz this morning and conveyed to him that he was our natural choice for this position. His appointment is open-ended. I wish him good luck in his new role,” it quoted PCB chairman Sheheryar Khan as saying.

Afridi resigned as captain on Sunday after his team’s exit from the tournament’s group stage.

Waqar Younis resigned as head coach of the Pakistan team on Monday.

The 2009 T20 champions were widely criticised for a lacklustre performance at the latest tournament, with just one victory against unfancied Bangladesh and big losses to India, New Zealand and Australia.

Veterans like Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik have been singled out.

Ahmed, a 28-year right-handed wicketkeeper-batsman, has played 21 T20 Internationals and the same number of Test matches as well as 58 one-day internationals.

Pakistan’s head coach Younis resigned on Monday following his team’s humiliating exit from the World Twenty20 cricket tournament at the group stage.

The 2009 champions had been widely blasted by fans following a lacklustre performance with just one victory against lowly ranked Bangladesh and big losses to India, New Zealand and Australia.

“I am resigning from my post today with a heavy heart,” he told reporters in Lahore. Referring to a report written in the aftermath of the World Twenty20 in India that was widely leaked in the Pakistani press, he added: “I want my recommendations to be implemented. They were not acted on when I first made them in 2015.”

The 44-year-old took on the job for the second time in 2014, having previously held the post in 2010-11.

He formed a formidable partnership with Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq to lift the team to number two in the Test rankings late last year, a spot they had previously attained in 2006.

The fast-bowling legend failed, however, to reverse Pakistan’s slide in the game’s shorter formats, with the team ranked a lowly seventh and eighth place in Twenty20 and one-day internationals respectively. — AFP.