File image of Babar Azam.© X (Twitter)
Pakistan all-rounder Imad Wasim has stated that the decision to reinstate Babar Azam as captain of Pakistan in white-ball cricket came as a surprise to not just everyone in the team, but everyone in the nation. After Pakistan failed to make the semi-finals of the 2023 ODI World Cup under his leadership, Babar Azam had resigned from captaincy in all formats, with pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi taking over. However, less than six months later, Babar was brought back as Pakistan captain right before the 2024 T20 World Cup, where Pakistan fared miserably, getting knocked out in the initial group phase. Imad expressed his shock at the decision of the selectors.
"Yes, I was surprised. But what can I say? It's ultimately the selector's call," said Imad, speaking on the PakPassion YouTube channel.
"Whatever they thought was the best option, (based on that) they picked the team, they picked the captain," he said.
"Not just me, everybody was surprised, to be honest. Everyone in Pakistan as well," Imad added.
Imad, however, refused to claim that the change in captaincy was the reason behind Pakistan's underwhelming showing.
"I don't believe in that. I think you can make anyone captain, it's just how you play inside the ground, it's just the performance that matters. Obviously, captaincy and management plays a part, but ultimately it's all individual (performance of the players)," said Imad.
"I can't put this or that on the captaincy or management. At the end of the day, it's my personal performance as well," said Imad.
Pakistan lost their opening two games in the 2024 T20 World Cup. First, they lost in a dramatic Super Over to co-hosts and debutants USA, and then succumbed to defeat despite looking set for victory against arch-rivals India. The two defeats ensured that India and USA qualified ahead of Pakistan in the league standings.