The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has strongly denied any claims of a dispute between Shaheen Afridi, Salman Agha, and director Mike Hesson. The board emphasized that these claims are completely false and hold no truth.

In a statement, the PCB described the allegations as not only baseless but also damaging to the individuals involved and the overall image of Pakistan cricket. The board made it clear that such stories have no factual support and appear to be deliberately spread to create controversy.

The PCB also warned that it would take strong legal steps against those responsible for circulating these rumors. They reiterated their commitment to maintaining team unity and protecting the reputation of both players and officials from false media narratives.

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PCB Denies Reports of Dispute Between Shaheen Afridi and Salman Agha:

A social media post recently claimed that Mike Hesson and Salman Ali Agha were unhappy with Shaheen Afridi’s behavior, which quickly gained attention. The issue was brought to PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi, but the board has firmly denied the claims, labeling the reports as completely false and without any credibility.

The Pakistan Cricket Board urged media platforms to act responsibly and verify facts before sharing news. It emphasized the importance of caution and requested that unverified reports not be circulated, especially those that could damage reputations or disrupt team harmony. The board also called for more responsible journalism in matters related to the national team.

As per India Today, in an official statement PCB said,” The PCB affirms that no such incident has occurred at any point during training or practice sessions. These malicious rumours are entirely fictitious and appear to have been deliberately concocted with clear malafide intent to sow discord within the national squad.”

They further said, “ The PCB considers this a serious and premeditated defamation campaign, which is aimed at damaging the professional integrity of the individuals targeted and the collective environment of the squad. Any persons found complicit in propagating these claims will be held fully accountable under applicable laws. The PCB remains committed to protecting its players, staff, and the sanctity of the national team from unwarranted and harmful speculation.”

Pakistan is set to face West Indies in a white-ball series, starting with three T20 Internationals followed by three One Day Internationals. The upcoming tour will provide both teams with valuable match practice and a chance to fine-tune their squads ahead of major international tournaments.

Pakistan's current skipper, Salman Ali Agha, cleared all the speculations about the relationship between him and Babar Azam. There were rumors circulating on social media platforms that there might be some rift between these two Pakistani internationals. But Agha served different opinions; he informed the media that they were friends from school days. 

Pakistan just ended a home series against Bangladesh where they whitewashed the traveling side by 3-0. Due to this swift performance, Team Pakistan has gained an ample amount of confidence for their upcoming assignments. Along with their performances on the field, players have been dealing with speculations about Agha and Azam. 

At a press conference after the third ODI between Pakistan and Bangladesh at the Gaddafi Stadium, the host team skipper cleared all air around him and the former captain. According to Agha, when they were at the school, there was no internet or social media platforms. 

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"Babar and I have been friends since 2008, during our school days. Back then, there was no social media. I never followed him online, so there’s no point in unfollowing now. People just like to talk — there’s nothing to it," Salman Ali Agha said this to the reporters in Lahore.

Agha looking to maintain the momentum with a core team

Despite the controversy, he is hoping for the best outcomes from their upcoming events. Pakistan will next tour Bangladesh, followed by a series in the West Indies. The all-rounder addressed that his team will try to hold the core of the winning team as much as possible. 

Ali said, "Next, we’re heading to Bangladesh, followed by a tour of the West Indies. We may need to include more spinners there due to the conditions. As long as I’m the captain, we’ll continue playing this way — keeping both batters and bowlers under pressure."

Watch the what he said about Babar Azam

Salman Ali Agha 🗣️ : " Me ny Babar Azam ko kabhi Instagram par Follow hi nahi kiya" pic.twitter.com/xsVq4ucIFO

— Ahtasham Riaz (@ahtashamriaz22) June 1, 2025

 Pakistan won by 37 runs in the 1st T20I at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. After winning the toss, Pakistan batted and made a total of 201/7 in their 20 overs; Bangladesh made only 164/10 in 19.2 overs, giving Pakistan an easy victory by 37 runs (with 4 balls to spare).

Pakistan Innings

Pakistan set a solid score of 201/7 in their 20 overs. Salman Ali Agha led the attack with a vibrant 56 from 34 balls, and Shadab Khan scored 48 runs from just 25 balls; both provided impetus to get Pakistan off to a good start. Hassan Nawaz also showed good intent, scoring 44 from 22 balls, and thus contributed significantly towards the task at hand. Among the Bangladeshi bowlers, Shoriful Islam was the best with 2-32 from 3 overs, while Tanzim Hasan Sakib also played his part with 1-22 from 2 overs, and Hasan Mahmud's 1-24 from 3 overs added to the mix. Unfortunately, the trio did not do enough to cull a big total.

Bangladesh Innings

With the goal of seeking out the target of 202, Bangladesh scored a total of 164 before being bowled out in 19.2 overs and finishing 37 runs short. Litton Das was the star for Bangladesh, scoring 48 from 30 balls, and showed signs of resistance. Jaker Ali (36 off 20) and Tanzid Hasan (31 off 17) pushed hard to keep the target in sight; however, there was too much for them to chase. Hasan Ali was the pick of the Pakistan bowlers, with a magical 5 for 30 from 3.2 overs. Shadab Khan continued to showcase his all-round credentials, taking 2 for 26 from 4 overs, and Khushdil Shah recorded 1 for 6 from 1 over. Pakistan completed a disciplined bowling effort to win the match with 4 balls to spare to lead the series 1-0.

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PAK vs BAN, 1st T20I: Match Scorecard

Pakistan—201/7 (20 Overs)

Bangladesh—164/10 (19.2 Overs)

 Salman Ali Agha: Pakistan’s New T20 Captain for the New Zealand Tour

Shadab Khan was initially selected for Pakistan's T20I captaincy for the New Zealand tour, but the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) decided to go with Salman Ali Agha instead of him. While Shadab didn’t get the most crucial role, but he was appointed as vice-captain for the series. Pakistan ended up losing the five-match T20I series 1-4.
As per a report from Pakistan Cricket , the PCB had thought about making Shadab the captain but chose not to. Shadab has previous leadership experience in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), where he captained Islamabad United to a title win last year. He performed well with both bat and ball, playing a key role in the victory and earning the Player of the Tournament award.

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The PCB decided not to appoint Shadab Khan as captain after discussions with the selectors. Before finalizing the squad for the New Zealand tour, the board consulted five mentors Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saqlain Mushtaq, Waqar Younis, Misbah-ul-Haq, and Shoaib Malik. These mentors had earlier been criticized for their supposed role in picking Pakistan’s squad for the Champions Trophy, where the team was knocked out in the group stage. However, they later clarified that they were not involved in the final selection.

🚨PCB REJECTED SHADAB KHAN'S CAPTAINCY PROPOSAL🚨

- Shadab Khan was considered for the T20I captaincy during Pakistan's tour of New Zealand, but PCB rejected the proposal, prioritizing new players for the T20 WC 2026. Salman Ali Agha was appointed as captain. [Cricket Pakistan] pic.twitter.com/NpI9puZ3nx

— Salman (@SalmanAsif2007) April 1, 2025

 

With the T20 World Cup coming up next year, the PCB wanted to try out new players, which is why Salman Ali Agha was given the captaincy. Agha had been one of Pakistan’s most reliable batsmen and was in great form. He ended up as the team’s highest run-scorer in the series, making 167 runs in five matches at an average of 41.75 and a strike rate of 135.77.

On the other hand, Shadab Khan had a rough series. He scored only 58 runs and took just one wicket while conceding runs at an economy of 11 per over. Despite the recent losses, the PCB is still focused on giving young players a chance and encouraging a more aggressive style of cricket.

This Champions Trophy would be most heart breaking for Pakistan and their Cricket Team, As they were hosting the Champions Trophy. But after 4 days of its happening they were out of the tournament. Pakistan played their first match against New Zealand where they lost their first encounter. They lost their second match against their arch rival India with that loss they were completely out from Champions Trophy. 

They had their mere thinner chance but rain spoiled their third game. There were enough backlash from people to their team. Addressing the team selection, change of coaching staffs, playing with same type of players in the team and PCB runs with a recomondation quota and so on. Now with their early exit and hefty loss. PCB has taken strict actions to improve on players fitness and quality. 

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Complete Revamp Of The Team

First and foremost PCB is going to terminate the contract of Aquib Javed who was appointed as caretaker of the Pakistan team after Gary Kiersten was sacked from the position.  Even the red ball tenure was also given to him when Jason Gillespie resigned from his post, under his guidance Pakistan beat England 2-1 which ultimately cemented him. 

But the recent depature in CT will change everything. Even it will be hard for the board to acquire new coaches as of frequent changes, There will be a revamp for players like Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Saheen Afridi who can be sidelined from the team for a while to give chance to upcoming players who are waiting for their chance. 

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Salman Ali Aga Becomes The New T20 Captain

PCB has shuffled its approach and taken a chance to revamp the team. Soon Pakistan going to play against New Zealand for 5 5-match T20 series and 3 3-match ODI series. For the ODI series Mohammad Rizwan is once again attained as the captain but in T20 Salman Ali Aga has been announced as captain and Shadab Khan announced as vice-captain. In his recent press meet Salman Ali Aga addressed the gathering and said he is honoured that he will be leading the Pakistan side. 

Which is a new challenge for him, he urged that my task is to get players to play fearless and high-risk cricket,". He claimed that in that process they will face failures, T20 has developed more and in this era we have to play fearlessly, we need to play with a different mindset and selected players will not be dropped with certain failures. We have to develop the quality of players and have to give confidence to them. As the Asia Cup is nearing we are gearing up a player pool of 24-25 players so that there won't be any difficulty shortly. 

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced the complete white-ball squads for the upcoming Australia and Zimbabwe tour. The Pakistan men’s national cricket team will now play under the new captain in the upcoming overseas tours.  

Early this month, Babar Azam stepped down from the white-ball captaincy role of the Pakistan national cricket team, citing his workload issue as he wants to put more focus on his batting.

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Mohammad Rizwan is Pakistan's new ODI and T20I captain

Wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan has been appointed as the Pakistan ODI and T20I captain. He will lead the Pakistan white-ball teams in the ODI and T20I series in the upcoming Australia and Zimbabwe tour, except for the T20I series in Zimbabwe, where he has been rested.

In the Australia tour, Pakistan will play a three-match ODI series and a three-match T20I series, starting on November 4. Then, Pakistan will travel to Zimbabwe for another three-match ODI and T20I series, starting on November 24. 

Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Naseem Shah, who were rested for the last two matches of the recently concluded three-match home Test series against England, are ready for the Australia tour as all of them are present in both ODI and T20I squads of the tour. However, they have been rested from the Zimbabwe tour. 

Salman Agha will lead T20I team in Zimbabwe 

After leading Pakistan in three successive away white-ball series, ODI and T20I series in Australia and ODI series in Zimbabwe, Mohammad Rizwan will be rested from the T20I series in Zimbabwe. While Salman Agha will play the deputy role of Rizwan in these three straight white-ball series, he will play the captain role of the T20I squad in the Zimbabwe tour. 

Aamir Jamal, Arafat Minhas, Faisal Akram, and Haseebullah are the uncapped players in the ODI squads. Muhammad Irfan Khan, and Saim Ayub. Jahandad Khan and Salman Ali Agha are the non-debutant names in the T20I squads. 

After these two tours, Pakistan will travel to South Africa for a three-match T20I series, a three-match ODI series, and a two-match Test series.   

Pakistan squads for Australia tour 

ODI squad: Mohammad Rizwan (Captain and wk), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi

T20I squad: Mohammad Rizwan (Captain and wk), Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Omair Bin Yousuf, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, Usman Khan

Pakistan squads for Zimbabwe tour

ODI squad: Mohammad Rizwan (Captain and wk), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha, Shahnawaz Dahani, Tayyab Tahir

T20I squad: Salman Agha (Captain), Ahmed Daniyal, Arafat Minhas, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (wk), Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Omair bin Yousuf, Qasim Akram, Sahibzada Farhan, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir, Usman Khan