After a significant reorganisation, Shahid Afridi has been given a prominent position within the Pakistan cricket setup

On Saturday, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced that former captain Shahid Afridi will be taking over as the interim leader of the National Selection Committe.

Afridi will serve as the chairman of the panel of four people, which also includes Rao Iftikhar Anjum and former all-rounder Abdul Razzaq. Haroon Rashid will be in charge of coordinating the meeting.

At this time, the assignment is solely for the next home series against New Zealand, which will begin with the first Test in Karachi on December 26 and continue through the rest of the series.

Reviewing the Test squad that was announced by the previous panel, which was led by Mohammad Wasim, is the responsibility of the committee that has been formed for this purpose.

“Shahid Afridi, a former captain of Pakistan’s cricket team, has been given the interim chairperson role of the Men’s National Selection Committee by the PCB Management Committee.

In addition to them, Abdul Razzaq and Rao Iftikhar Anjum are also members of the panel. Convener duties would be taken on by Haroon Rashid “A tweet from Pakistan cricket said the following.

Shahid Afridi, a former captain of Pakistan’s cricket team, has been given the interim chairperson role of the Men’s National Selection Committee by the PCB Management Committee. In addition to them, Abdul Razzaq and Rao Iftikhar Anjum are also members of the panel. The role of Convener will be taken on by Haroon Rashid.

The prior Pakistan top selector Wasim’s contract was terminated by the new PCB management committee, which is led by Najam Sethi. This was followed by the appointment of Afridi as Pakistan’s new chief selector. The now-defunct 2019 constitution was responsible for the formation of a number of committees, all of which have since been dissolved.

Afridi stated the following in response to the appointment: “I feel honoured to have been handed this job by the PCB Management Committee and will leave no stone unturned in performing this responsibility to the best of my abilities.”

“We have to get back to winning, and I have no doubt that if we make meritocratic and strategic selection decisions, we will be able to assist the national side in having a successful performance in the series against New Zealand and regaining the confidence of our supporters. This is something that we absolutely must do.

Soon, I will call a meeting with the selectors, and during that meeting, I will discuss my plans in relation to the future matches “he added.

After taking over on Thursday, the new chairman immediately announced this decision as his first official act in his role.

Wasim, a former batter for Pakistan, was appointed chief selector in December of 2020, and it was hoped that this system would remain in place through the One-Day International World Cup in 2023.

On Friday, he received an email that led to his termination. The last selection that Wasim received was for the test team that will compete against New Zealand at home.

During his leadership, Pakistan competed in a total of 16 tests, winning eight of them and losing six of them. This included two home series against Australia (which Pakistan won 1-0) and England (3-0).

Pakistan competed in the men’s Twenty20 World Cup in 2021 and 2022, and both times they made it to the final. During Wasim’s tenure, Pakistan competed in 55 Twenty20 Internationals and had a record of 34 wins and 18 losses. In addition, Pakistan’s record in the 15 ODIs was 10 wins, 5 losses.

On the other side, Shahid Afridi participated in 27 tests, 398 one-day internationals, and 99 Twenty20 Internationals between the years 1996 and 2018, during which he racked up a combined total of 11,196 runs and 541 wickets.

In addition to that, he commanded his country’s team in 83 total international matches. In 2009, he was a part of the Pakistan team that triumphed at Lord’s to take home the ICC Men’s Twenty20 World Cup.

During his 17-year career, which began in 1996 and ended in 2013, Abdul Razzaq participated in 343 international matches, scored 7,419 runs, and took 389 wickets. Additionally, he was a member of the team that triumphed in the Twenty20 World Cup at Lord’s in 2009 and took home the trophy.

Between the years 2004 and 2010, Rao Iftikhar took part in one Test match, 62 One-Day Internationals, and two Twenty20 Internationals.