Sarfraz Ahmed, who led Pakistan to the Champions Trophy title last week, is set to be appointed the captain of the Test team.
A senior official of the Pakistan Cricket Board told PTI that Shaharyar Khan, chairman, and Najam Sethi, the head of the executive committee, had decided to promote Sarfraz as Test captain when in London to witness the Champions Trophy.
Read: Pakistan beats India, clinches Champions Trophy
“It is now just a formality of the PCB Chairman making an announcement when he returns home. The decision has been taken and is final. Sarfraz will take over as Test captain after being appointed as deputy to Misbah-ul-Haq on the recent tour to the West Indies,” the official said.
The official also said that after Shaharyar returns home in a week’s time, a meeting of the governing body will be held in which formal approval will be given to Sarfraz’s ascension.
Misbah retired as Test captain after seven years as Test captain following the West Indies tour last month. He is Pakistan’s most successful Test captain so far.
Pakistan’s next Test series is not until September-October when it hosts Sri Lanka in the U.A.E. The long gap has come about after Pakistan pulled out of a scheduled Test tour of Bangladesh in July.
The official said that a committee of former Test players - Haroon Rasheed and Mudassar Nazar - who hold key positions in the board, and chief operating officer, Subhan Ahmed, will also submit its feedback on the performance of the support staff and coaches. “Any decision on the future of some coaches will be taken based on the committee’s suggestions. But chairman, Shaharyar is delighted with the work of head coach, Mickey Arthur,” he said.
The official conceded that it was Shaharyar who had convinced everyone in the board to go with Arthur last year after the resignation of Waqar Younis as head coach. Arthur’s contract will be reviewed next year in April and there is no reason now for him not to continue or get an extension,” another reliable source said.
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