Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has taken strict action against batsman Fakhar Zaman after Zaman publicly supported Babar Azam in a tweet on X.
According to Geo, PCB has issued a show cause notice to Fakhar Zaman and asked for a reply within a week. Geo sources say that the notice was issued to Fakhar due his public criticism of the selection policy, stating that the tweet was a violation of discipline.
Yesterday, the PCB selection committee announced the squad for the second and third Tests against England. PCB did not include Babar Azam in the team to ‘give him rest’, while Naseem Shah and Shaheen Afridi were also dropped.
After this, Fakhar Zaman shared a Tweet on X (Formerly Twitter) saying it’s concerning to hear suggestions about dropping Babar Azam. India didn’t bench Virat Kohli during his rough stretch between 2020 and 2023, when he averaged 19.33, 28.21, and 26.50, respectively.
‘If we are considering sidelining our premier batsman, arguably the best Pakistan has ever produced, it could send a deeply negative message across the team. There is still time to avoid pressing the panic button; we should focus on safeguarding our key players rather than undermining them,’ he added.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan also criticised the PCB for dropping Babar from the squad against England.
Michael tweeted on X (previously Twitter): “So Pakistan hasn’t won in a while; go one nil down in the series and decide to drop the best player. I guess Pakistan cricket is full of surprises, but this tops the lot. It is an absolutely stupid decision unless he has asked for a break.”
Azhar Mehmood’s statement on dropping Babar Azam:
Pakistan bowling coach Azhar Mehmood says that we have to take 20 wickets; if we go with spin, then we can get England out. We had a clear plan regarding the pitch; Babar Azam has not been given a drop, and he has been rested due to his workload.
Pakistan has announced the squad for the upcoming second Test match against England in Multan.
Kamran Ghulam, Zahid Mehmood, Nauman Ali, and Sajid Khan are on the team.
Here are the playing XI for both teams.
Pakistan playing XI:
Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (Captain), Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Muhammad Rizwan, Salman Ali Agha, Zahid Mehmood, Sajid Khan, Nauman Ali.
England playing XI:
Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (capt), Jamie Smith (wk), Brydon Carse, Matthew Potts, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir
Pakistan will play their second Test match against England on October 15 at Multan Cricket Stadium.
