After poor showing in T20 World Cup 2024, Pakistan Cricket Board makes changes to selection panel, strategy

Former Pakistan cricketers Mohammad Yousuf and Asad Shafiq have been retained in the Pakistan men’s cricket team’s selection panel by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

Yousuf and Shafiq, along with coach Gary Kirsten and the captains of Pakistan’s limited overs and Test teams, will be a part of the new selection panel.

The old selection panel, that included Yousuf and Shafiq, along with Wahab Riaz and Abdul Razzaq was dissolved by the PCB after Pakistan’s disastrous outing at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

Pakistan lost to the United States of America and India in the group stages of the T20 World Cup 2024 and did not make it to the Super Eight stage.

The PCB went back to the drawing board and involved several former cricketers and experts to discuss the way forward for Pakistan. No word yet has been given by the PCB on whether Babar Azam will continue leading the team.

The new selection panel’s first assignment will be selecting the team for the upcoming two Test matches against Bangladesh. Pakistan will host Bangladesh in Rawalpindi from August 21 to 25 and in Karachi from August 30 to September 3. The two Test matches are a part of the World Test Championship 2023-2025 cycle.

In the new selection committee, all members, including Yousuf and Shafiq, will have voting rights and have decision-making authority along with assistant team coach Azhar Mahmood.

Four PCB’s board members – advisor to the PCB chairman Bilal Afzal, Manager of Analytics and Team Strategy Hassan Cheema, Director of High-Performance Nadeem Khan, and Director of International Cricket Usman Wahla – will be onboard as the non-voting members of the committee.