{"id":18819,"date":"2026-09-01T05:52:19","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T05:52:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=18819"},"modified":"2026-09-01T05:52:19","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T05:52:19","slug":"pakistan-was-ruined-that-day-ex-cricketer-blames-babar-azam-shaheen-afridi-rift-for-teams-downfall-cricket-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=18819","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Pakistan was ruined that day\u2019: Ex-cricketer blames Babar Azam-Shaheen Afridi rift for team\u2019s downfall | Cricket News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"e9jwa\">\n<div class=\"vdo_embedd\">\n<div class=\"GfdvZ\">\n<section class=\"_bIDB  clearfix id-r-component leadmedia undefined undefined  E9tg9 \" style=\"top:0px\">\n<div class=\"_bIDB\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">\n<div class=\"ypVvZ\">\n<div class=\"WGttI\"><img src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-133669218,imgsize-87012,width-400,height-225,resizemode-4\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg\" alt=\"\u2018Pakistan was ruined that day\u2019: Ex-cricketer blames Babar Azam-Shaheen Afridi rift for team\u2019s downfall\" title=\"Pakistan's Shaheen Shah Afridi, left. celebrates with teammate Babar Azam (AP Photo)\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Ta7d_ img_cptn\"><span title=\"Pakistan's Shaheen Shah Afridi, left. celebrates with teammate Babar Azam (AP Photo)\">Pakistan&#8217;s Shaheen Shah Afridi, left. celebrates with teammate Babar Azam (AP Photo)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Former <a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/topic\/pakistan\" styleobj=\"[object Object]\" class=\"\" commonstate=\"[object Object]\" frmappuse=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pakistan<\/a> batter Basit Ali has claimed that a fallout between Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi over the captaincy played a major role in the national team\u2019s decline.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"3\"\/>Basit\u2019s comments came after Pakistan\u2019s miserable showing in England, where they have already surrendered the three-match Test series 2-0 following a 194-run defeat at Lord\u2019s.<!-- --> The visitors have faced widespread criticism for their performances, with the team struggling to show any fight in either of the opening two Tests.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"7\"\/><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"9\"\/>According to Basit, however, Pakistan\u2019s problems go much deeper than the current results. He believes the leadership dispute between two of the country\u2019s senior players created a damaging divide within the setup.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"11\"\/>\u201cBabar Azam is not a strong captain. I am not speaking about this based on the performance in England. <!-- -->He has made many wrong decisions. The main reason for Pakistan cricket&#8217;s downfall is the rift between Shaheen and Babar. When there was a falling-out between the two over the captaincy, Pakistan cricket was ruined that day,\u201d Ali said on the \u2018Game Plan\u2019 show.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"16\"\/>He also suggested that the consequences of the dispute are still visible in Pakistan cricket.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"18\"\/>\u201cMany statements were made, saying Shaheen is a very good bowler and Babar is a very good bowler. The rift, whoever created that, the side effects can be seen now,\u201d he added.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"22\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h3>Babar and Shaheen captaincy saga<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<p>Pakistan\u2019s leadership has gone through repeated changes since the 2023 ODI World Cup.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"25\"\/>Babar stepped down as captain after Pakistan\u2019s disappointing campaign in India, with Shaheen subsequently handed the ODI leadership. However, after Pakistan\u2019s poor results in New Zealand, Babar returned to the captaincy.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"27\"\/>His second stint did not last long either. Babar was removed again after Pakistan failed to reach the semi-finals of the 2024 T20 World Cup.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"30\"\/>The constant reshuffling has now left Pakistan with separate captains across formats. Babar leads the Test side, Shaheen is the ODI captain, while Salman Ali Agha is in charge of the T20I team.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"32\"\/>Basit believes the damage caused by the earlier captaincy dispute cannot be ignored while assessing Pakistan\u2019s current struggles.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"35\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h3>Major changes after England disaster<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<p>The PCB has now begun making changes following the disastrous England tour.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"38\"\/>On Monday, the board decided to send seven players home, with Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha among those affected. <!-- -->Test coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul were also removed from the setup.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"42\"\/>White-ball coach Mike Hesson will take charge of Pakistan for the third and final Test against England in Birmingham.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"44\"\/>While Babar remains Pakistan\u2019s Test captain, Shaheen has not been part of the red-ball setup and is currently out of favour in Test cricket.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"46\"\/>Babar took over as Test captain from Shan Masood earlier this year. Under his leadership, Pakistan drew a two-match Test series against the West Indies.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"48\"\/>However, his own batting form in the longest format remains a concern. Babar has gone four years without scoring a Test century, adding to the pressure surrounding his leadership as Pakistan prepare for the final Test at Edgbaston.<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/sports\/cricket\/news\/pakistan-was-ruined-that-day-ex-cricketer-blames-babar-azam-shaheen-afridi-rift-for-teams-downfall\/articleshow\/133669141.cms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pakistan&#8217;s Shaheen Shah Afridi, left. celebrates with teammate Babar Azam (AP Photo) Former Pakistan batter Basit Ali has claimed that a fallout between Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi over the captaincy played a major role in the national team\u2019s decline.Basit\u2019s comments came after Pakistan\u2019s miserable showing in England, where they have already surrendered the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18820,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18819","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-31"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","blogsy-small":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","blogsy-small-tall":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","blogsy-small-square":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","blogsy-small-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","blogsy-medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","blogsy-medium-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","blogsy-large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg","blogsy-wide":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/netherlands-pakistan-t20-wcup-cricket.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"admin","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"Pakistan&#8217;s Shaheen Shah Afridi, left. celebrates with teammate Babar Azam (AP Photo) Former Pakistan batter Basit Ali has claimed that a fallout between Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi over the captaincy played a major role in the national team\u2019s decline.Basit\u2019s comments came after Pakistan\u2019s miserable showing in England, where they have already surrendered the [&hellip;]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 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