Babar Azam steps down as Pakistan captain for the second time

Babar’s second stint at the captaincy saw Pakistan lose seven matches and has coincided with a poor run of his batting form.

Babar Azam has resigned as Pakistan’s white-ball cricket captain for a second time in 11 months, citing a need to lessen his workload and focus on improving his game.

Babar stepped down as captain of all three formats last year after Pakistan failed to make the knockout stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup in India, before returning as white-ball skipper in March ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup in the United States (USA) and West Indies, where Pakistan did not make it past the opening group stage.

“It’s been an honour to lead this team, but it’s time for me to step down and focus on my playing role,” Babar wrote in a post on X on Tuesday.

“Captaincy has been a rewarding experience, but it’s added a significant workload. I want to prioritise my performance, enjoy my batting, and spend quality time with my family, which brings me joy.

“By stepping down, I will gain clarity moving forward and focus more energy on my game and personal growth.”

Dear Fans,

I'm sharing some news with you today. I have decided to resign as captain of the Pakistan men's cricket team, effective as of my notification to the PCB and Team Management last month.

It's been an honour to lead this team, but it's time for me to step down and focus…

— Babar Azam (@babarazam258) October 1, 2024

Pakistan won just six of the 13 Twenty20 international (T20I) matches they played under Babar in his second stint. Pakistan have not played a one-day international (ODI) match since the 2023 World Cup.

Shaheen Shah Afridi led Pakistan briefly in the T20 format but was removed from the captaincy after Pakistan lost 4-1 to New Zealand.

Mohsin Naqvi, chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), reappointed Babar as white-ball captain in March, but he could only win a bilateral series against Ireland 2-1.

Pakistan drew the home T20 series against New Zealand 2-2 before losing 2-0 to England just before the Twenty20 World Cup, where the 2009 champions were involved in the tournament’s biggest upset when they were beaten by hosts and debutants USA.

Pakistan will host England in three Tests starting Monday, before travelling to Australia for ODI and T20 matches in November.

Babar has seen a dip in his batting form across all formats and has failed to score an international fifty in his last 10 innings.

The 29-year-old has been named in Pakistan’s squad to face England in a three-match Test series, which begins in Multan on October 7.

Test captain Shan Masood, who took over when Babar quit in November, has backed Babar to be among the runs in the upcoming series.

“We all know Babar is one of the top batters in the world and despite not scoring big runs the good thing is that he is not out of form, we have to back him,” Masood said in his pre-series news conference on Monday.

The PCB is expected to name a new skipper after the Test series as Pakistan’s next white-ball tour will be against 50-over world champions Australia next month.