![[JUGRAJ SINGH]](https://www.unp.me/data/avatars/m/123/123038.jpg?1591210006){kind=avatar}
Flamboyant wicketkeeper batsman Sarfraz Ahmed has been named as the new captain of Pakistan's Twenty20 International (T20I) team, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced via a media release on Tuesday (April 5). Sarfraz takes over the reins of the side from incumbent skipper Shahid Afridi, who stepped down after the team's lacklustre World T20 campaign in India.
Calls for elevating Sarfraz to a leadership role gathered steam in the wake of the national team's ignominious Super 10 exit in the showpiece T20 event. The 28-year-old had impressed as captain during the inaugural season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), guiding an unfancied Quetta Gladiators to the final of the tournament.
While Sarfraz's appointment was along expected lines, the timing of the announcement is a touch surprising considering Pakistan's next T20I assignment is only in September.
"I spoke to Sarfraz this morning and conveyed to him that he was our natural choice for this position. His appointment is open-ended. I wish him good luck in his new role," PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan said.
Sarfraz, an experienced T20 player, has scored 1375 runs at an average of 28.06. He has also represented the national side 21 times, scoring 291 runs and effecting 11 dismissals. The aggressive batsman began 2016 with a string of good scores on the tour of New Zealand and in the Asia Cup but his position in the lower middle-order restricted his contribution to a measly 21 runs from 17 balls in three innings at the T20 World Cup.
Calls for elevating Sarfraz to a leadership role gathered steam in the wake of the national team's ignominious Super 10 exit in the showpiece T20 event. The 28-year-old had impressed as captain during the inaugural season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), guiding an unfancied Quetta Gladiators to the final of the tournament.
While Sarfraz's appointment was along expected lines, the timing of the announcement is a touch surprising considering Pakistan's next T20I assignment is only in September.
"I spoke to Sarfraz this morning and conveyed to him that he was our natural choice for this position. His appointment is open-ended. I wish him good luck in his new role," PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan said.
Sarfraz, an experienced T20 player, has scored 1375 runs at an average of 28.06. He has also represented the national side 21 times, scoring 291 runs and effecting 11 dismissals. The aggressive batsman began 2016 with a string of good scores on the tour of New Zealand and in the Asia Cup but his position in the lower middle-order restricted his contribution to a measly 21 runs from 17 balls in three innings at the T20 World Cup.
![[JUGRAJ SINGH]](https://www.unp.me/data/avatars/s/123/123038.jpg?1591210006){kind=avatar}
