After ODI & T20I, Babar Azam becomes Pakistan's Test Skipper

Lahore:Pakistan appointed Babar Azam as Test captain, making him the country's captain across all three formats.

Babar was given the role in both limited overs formats last year, with his first assignment in T20Is coming against Australia in November 2019, while the recent ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Super League series against Zimbabwe was his first challenge as ODI captain.

Azhar Ali was appointed as Test captain at the same time as Babar was handed the captaincy in white-ball cricket, but has endured some poor form since taking on the position.

Pakistan's next Test series will be in New Zealand, where they will play two matches as part of the ICC World Test Championship. The new skipper will be aiming for a significant improvement over his side's last trip to the country in the longest format, when the hosts cruised to a 2-0 sweep.

The 26-year-old has been a crucial part of the Pakistan Test line-up since the start of 2018, since when he has scored 1570 runs at 62.80, an average which places him behind only Marnus Labuschagne among batsmen who have scored at least 1000 runs in the period.

''I feel truly honoured to have been appointed Test captain and join some of the most iconic players who have captained Pakistan in the purest format of the game. I can now say with conviction that dreams can come true only if you chase them with honesty, dedication and commitment,'' said Babar. 

''I am ready and prepared to take up the additional responsibility and the fact which gives me additional confidence is that I can do the job is the experience that is available to me in the changing room in the shape of the players and support staff.

I want to thank Azhar Ali for the way he captained the team in the last season, which was a difficult one, but I know that he will leave no stone unturned in giving his very best to the team,'' he added.(UNI)