Babar Azam Steps Down As Captain From All Formats of Pakistan Cricket Team After World Cup 2023

Babar Azam Steps Down As Captain: Babar Azam stepped down as Pakistan's captain for all forms in the wake of the team's disastrous World Cup 2023 campaign, in which they won only four of their nine games to miss out on a semi-final berth.

The Pakistani squad recently landed in Pakistan following their elimination from the 2023 ICC World Cup group stage. Babar Azam arrived home and straight away held a meeting with the PCB chairman.

He announced the development on the social media site X, which was formerly known as Twitter, not long after he met Zaka Ashraf, the chairman of the PCB's interim management committee, in Lahore.

Babar Azam wrote, "I vividly remember the moment when I received the call from PCB to lead Pakistan in 2019. Over the past four years, I've experienced many highs and lows on and off the field, but I wholeheartedly and passionately aimed to maintain Pakistan's pride and respect in the cricket world."

"Reaching the number 1 spot in the white-ball format was a result of the collective efforts of players, coaches, and management but I'd like to express my gratitude to passionate Pakistan cricket fans for their unwavering support during this journey," he added.

"Today, I am stepping down as the captain of Pakistan in all formats. It's a difficult decision but I feel it is the right time for this call."

"I will continue to represent Pakistan as a player in all three formats. I am here to support the new captain and the team with my experience and dedication," he further added.

"I want to express my sincere thanks to the Pakistan Cricket Board for entrusting me with this significant responsibility," he concluded.

Babar Azam's Post on X

Babar Azam was named Pakistan's T20I captain in October 2019 and assumed the ODI captaincy in May 2020. A month later, he became the official captain of every format.

Babar led Pakistan to the top of the ODI rankings during a captaincy characterized by both individual and team successes. The squad advanced to the T20 World Cup semifinals in 2021 and finished second in the championship game the following year.

Before Shubman Gill displaced him from the top slot earlier this month, Babar was the world's top-ranked ODI hitter from April 2021, which occurred at the same time as his ascent to captaincy.

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