LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) decision to remove Shaun Masood as the national Test captain has been explained by Pakistan’s High Performance Director Agib Javed.
Masood was replaced by Babar Azam after leading Pakistan’s Test team for almost three years. During his 16-match spell, Pakistan recorded four wins and 12 losses, giving him a 25 percent win rate.
Speaking on a recent podcast with former Pakistan captain Salman Butt, Aqib said the PCB expects its captain to deliver results and drive the team’s progress.
He added that despite the challenging circumstances, the team failed to move in the desired direction under Masood’s leadership.
“Ultimately a captain’s job is to deliver results and ensure the team’s progress. Shaun Masood had a good run in almost three years, but things were not moving in the right direction. We saw many flaws during the Bangladesh series and despite the circumstances we dealt with, we fully accept them,” Javed said.
The former Pakistan fast bowler further explained that the board’s assessment focuses more on tactical decision-making during matches, stressing that effective leadership means maximizing available resources regardless of the team’s limitations.
“Our bowlers may not be the best but it is the captain’s responsibility to use them effectively. Decisions like toss DRS bowling changes and plans to get the opposition’s Taylors out did not yield positive results and we felt they needed improvement,” he said.
The 53-year-old clarified that Masood’s removal was not only affected by his bat and that the PCB’s decision was based on the broader objective of improving the team’s leadership and field management.
“Shaun’s batting performance was reasonable, but the appointment of a new captain was forward-looking. We wanted to make changes that we believe will help the team improve and resolve the issues that have arisen,” added Aqib.