Pakistan’s long-running saga of captaincy uncertainty has taken another dramatic turn.
As Pakistan face South Africa in the ongoing Test at Rawalpindi, a major shake-up has hit their ODI setup — Mohammad Rizwan has been removed as captain, with Shaheen Shah Afridi appointed as his replacement.
Both Rizwan and Afridi are currently playing in the Rawalpindi Test, but the decision was made and announced in the middle of the match — perfectly in line with Pakistan cricket’s history of sudden and unpredictable changes.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) didn’t specify any reason for removing Rizwan in its official statement. In fact, the 33-year-old wicketkeeper-batter’s name wasn’t even mentioned. The board simply said that the new captain was chosen following a meeting in Islamabad between the selection committee and Pakistan’s white-ball coach, Mike Hesson.
Of Pakistan’s three format captains — Test captain Shan Masood, T20I skipper Salman Ali Agha, and ODI leader Rizwan — the latter was considered the most secure in his position. But speculation began to swirl in local media that Afridi might replace him. On Saturday, the PCB confirmed that senior officials would meet to decide the ODI captain for the upcoming series, which all but sealed Rizwan’s fate.
According to ESPNcricinfo, the decision wasn’t driven solely by coach Mike Hesson — top PCB officials also backed the change.
Rizwan had made a strong start as captain after being appointed last year. Under his leadership, Pakistan achieved a memorable series win in Australia, followed by victories over Zimbabwe and a whitewash of South Africa in their own backyard. But things started to fall apart this year.
Pakistan lost the tri-series final at home to New Zealand ahead of the Champions Trophy, then crashed out of the tournament from the group stage. In March, they were whitewashed by a weakened New Zealand side away from home and later suffered another series defeat against the West Indies in August.
Overall, Rizwan led Pakistan in 20 matches, winning nine and losing eleven. His personal batting form remained impressive, however — he scored 625 runs as captain, the second-highest in the team, just four runs short of Salman Ali Agha. His batting average as captain (41.66) was actually higher than his career average (40.49).
Afridi’s own leadership experience hasn’t been very encouraging so far. He captained the T20 side for just one series — a 4-1 defeat to New Zealand — before being abruptly replaced, in circumstances strikingly similar to Rizwan’s current situation.
Now, at 25, the left-arm pacer has been handed the ODI captaincy for the first time. With the ball, Afridi has been in outstanding form, finishing last year as Pakistan’s top wicket-taker. Since the start of the 2023 World Cup, he has taken 45 wickets in 22 ODIs — the highest among bowlers from full-member nations.
Afridi’s new chapter as Pakistan’s ODI captain will officially begin in early November with the series against South Africa.
