Rizwan’s captaincy tenure produced mixed results, with the 33-year-old wicketkeeper-batter having led Pakistan in 20 ODIs, beginning with a 2-1 series win over Australia in his debut assignment and later overseeing a 3-0 whitewash of South Africa in December 2024.
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Continuing with their frequent chop and change policy, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has sacked Mohammad Rizwan as the ODI skipper and replaced him with pace spearhead Shaheen Afridi with immediate effect and will begin his tenure in the upcoming three-match ODI series against South Africa, scheduled from November 4 to 8.
While the PCB did not provide a reason to replace Rizwan, it maintained that the decision was taken after a meeting in Islamabad attended by white-ball head coach Mike Hesson, Director of High Performance Aqib Javed and members of the national selection committee.
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Rizwan’s captaincy tenure produced mixed results, with the 33-year-old wicketkeeper-batter having led Pakistan in 20 ODIs, beginning with a 2-1 series win over Australia in his debut assignment and later overseeing a 3-0 whitewash of South Africa in December 2024.
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However, Pakistan’s nightmarish campaign in the ICC Champions Trophy earlier this year, where they were eliminated after just two matches, prompted a rethink from the management. Rizwan’s tenure concluded with 9 wins and 11 defeats.
Meanwhile, this will not be Afridi’s first stint as Pakistan skipper. The fast bowler previously led the side in T20Is in early 2024, when he was appointed captain for a five-match series against New Zealand away from home. Pakistan managed to win only the final match of that series, and a few months later, Babar Azam was reinstated as T20I captain before the leadership eventually passed to Salman Ali Agha last year.
Afridi, one of Pakistan’s premier fast bowlers and a key figure in both white-ball and red-ball formats, has represented his country in 194 internationals across formats.
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