Had a conversation with him…he’s going to be in this team as a leader: Shaan Masood reveals chat with Babar Azam after taking reins | Cricket News
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Pakan’s recently appointed Test captain Shaan Masood revealed the chat he had with Babar Azam before taking over the reins and also mentioned that his goal would be to build a culture where there are many leaders in the dressing room.
“I had a conversation with him (Babar Azam) and it was about taking the team forward, how to take it forward, Babar’s own role, and I think what you’ll see in the future is that he’s going to be in this team as a leader and the goal is to build a culture where there are many leaders, not just one captain doing everything,” Masood said to Cricket Pakan.
The 34-year-old also acknowledged that he was quite surprised when he was asked to take over the red-ball side. “I was playing in the One-Day Cup when it happened, completely out of the blue. I was in Islamabad at the time, and I think I received a call from the PCB (Pakan Cricket Board) that morning, saying that I should reach Lahore noon. Chairman Zaka Ashraf wanted to meet me. It was a very short notice, but I went for a day and then returned to play in the semi-final of the National One-Day cup. So, it was a very sudden story,”
The southpaw has a tough initial assignment of taking the side to play a three-match Test series against Australia away from home as part of their World Test Championship cycle.
In the ongoing practice match of Pakan against PM’XI the skipper started with a double ton. In his marathon innings, he scored 14 boundaries and hit one-six.
Pakan will next play a three-match series against the defending WTC Champions Australia. The first Test of the series will start on December 14 in Perth, followed a Boxing Day fixture in Melbourne and the final Test in Sydney.