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Shahid Afridi named Pakistan Twenty20 captain

Commenting on these developments PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan said the decisions were in line with his policy of taking decisions democratically. ‘I consulted Cricket Committee and my Board members before announcing these decisions. I wish both Afridi and Misbah very good luck in their upcoming assignments,’ PCB chief said. The board has however differed announcing the squad for the coming series against Australia in the UAE.

Pakistan will start their tour against Australia next month with a T20 scheduled on 5th October 2014 at Dubai Cricket Stadium. Afridi was tipped to be given the national T20 captaincy after Muhammad Hafeez stepped down from the job after the World T20 in Bangladesh this year where Pakistan failed to qualify for the semi-finals for the first time since the tournament’s inception in 2007.

Sources revealed that the name of young batsman Sohaib Maqsood was also discussed, but the votes were in favour of Afridi because of his vast experience of ODI and T20 cricket and also because he has led the side before.Afridi was removed as captain of the ODI and T20 teams in May 2011 after having a fallout with the board over disciplinary issues.

‘Players must shed fear of defeat’
Karachi: Soon after being re-appointed as Pakistan Twenty20 captain, flamboyant allrounder Shahid Afridi urged his players to shed of any ‘fear’ of losing and play their ‘natural’ game. ‘The main message I want to convey to the players is that they need to shed their fear of defeat and failure and play their natural game. Limited overs cricket is about aggression and our players need to take that approach,’ he said.

‘T20 cricket is for courageous players and I am confident we have talent in the team which just needs to be encouraged and spurred on,’ he added. Afridi, 34, who captained Pakistan in ODIs and T20 matches in 2010 and 2011 before being removed by the board said he was delighted to get back the responsibility.

‘I don’t want to go into details or rake up the past. But what happened than everyone knows and everybody knows what my performance as captain and player was,’ he said. The allrounder also promised to build a fighting unit for the World T20 in 2016. ‘I know how important it is for me to perform as well and I will be focusing a lot on my bowling and batting as well,’ he stated.
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