Dreams come true only if you chase them with honesty and dedication
In the quiet arithmetic of sporting leadership, Pakistan's cricket board made a generational transfer of trust in November 2020, removing the experienced Azhar Ali from the Test captaincy and handing Babar Azam — already the white-ball skipper at just 26 — command across all three formats. The decision, arriving in the wake of a summer series loss in England, was less a sudden rupture than the completion of a long-planned succession. It placed a young man's ambition at the center of Pakistan cricket's near future, while gently closing one chapter of a veteran's complicated relationship with leadership.
- A series defeat in England became the final weight that tipped the scales against Azhar Ali, despite him scoring a century in his very last match as captain — a cruel irony that underscored how results, not gestures, define tenure.
- The PCB's reversal was stark: having publicly committed to Azhar as recently as May 2020, the board changed course just months later after only eight Tests under his watch.
- Babar Azam's consolidation of all three captaincies is a deliberate concentration of authority, a calculated bet by the board on one young player's consistency and composure to unify Pakistan's cricketing identity.
- Azhar, at 35 and with 81 Test appearances, was not cast aside entirely — the door was left open for him as a specialist batsman, though the weight of a second captaincy removal shapes how that offer will be received.
- Babar's first test arrives swiftly and without mercy: ICC World Test Championship fixtures against New Zealand in late December and early January, on foreign soil, in a format he has never captained before.
On a Tuesday in November 2020, the Pakistan Cricket Board completed a transition that had been quietly taking shape for months. Azhar Ali, 35 and Pakistan's most experienced active Test player with 81 appearances, was relieved of the Test captaincy after a series loss in England — even though he had scored a century in his final match as skipper. PCB chairman Ehsan Mani traveled to Lahore to deliver the news personally, acknowledging Azhar's service and leaving open the possibility of his continued contribution as a batsman. "I believe Azhar still has a lot of cricket left in him," Mani said.
The decision carried a particular sting given that the board had publicly backed Azhar as recently as May, pledging support for the full 2020-21 season. Eight Tests later, that commitment had dissolved. It was not Azhar's first departure from captaincy — he had previously led Pakistan in ODIs from 2015 to 2017 before stepping down amid poor results. His Test tenure followed a familiar arc: appointed to provide stability, then removed when results failed to follow.
Into that space stepped Babar Azam, already the white-ball captain since late 2019 when Sarfaraz Ahmed was removed from all formats. Now, at 26, Babar assumed leadership across Tests, ODIs, and T20Is simultaneously — a consolidation the PCB had been building toward for years. He received the news with composed resolve. "I can now say with conviction that dreams can come true only if you chase them with honesty, dedication and commitment," he said, acknowledging the experienced players and staff around him.
His first assignment as all-format captain would come quickly: ICC World Test Championship matches against New Zealand in Mount Maunganui and Christchurch, beginning in late December. A 55-member contingent was being prepared for the tour, with the full squad announcement imminent. For Babar, it was the beginning of a new chapter. For Azhar, it was the closing of another — a captaincy career marked as much by circumstance as by cricket.
On a Tuesday in November, the Pakistan Cricket Board made a decision that had been building for months. Azhar Ali, the 35-year-old veteran who had captained the Test team for just over a year, was out. Babar Azam, the 26-year-old who already led Pakistan in white-ball cricket, would now lead across all three formats. The move came after a series loss in England that summer, despite Azhar scoring a century in his final Test as captain.
Azhar had been appointed to the job less than two years earlier, and the PCB had publicly backed him as recently as May, committing to him for the entire 2020-21 season. But eight Tests later, the board had changed course. Ehsan Mani, the PCB chairman, met with Azhar in Lahore to deliver the news. In a statement, Mani acknowledged Azhar's service—he was Pakistan's most experienced Test player in the current squad with 81 appearances—and suggested the door remained open for him to contribute as a specialist batsman. "I believe Azhar still has a lot of cricket left in him," Mani said.
This was not Azhar's first time stepping down from captaincy. He had led Pakistan in ODIs from 2015 to 2017 before resigning due to poor results. In Pakistan cricket, captaincy has often been a precarious position, and Azhar had become something of a familiar figure in that role—brought in to steady the ship, then removed when results faltered. His tenure in Tests followed a similar arc.
Barbar's ascension had been carefully orchestrated. The PCB had identified him as a future leader years earlier, and last October, after removing wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfaraz Ahmed from all formats, they appointed Babar as white-ball captain. Now, with the England series loss providing the catalyst, they consolidated his authority. Babar was 26 years old, and the board was betting on his consistency and leadership ability to carry the team forward across all three formats simultaneously.
Barbar responded to the appointment with the measured confidence of someone who had been prepared for this moment. "I can now say with conviction that dreams can come true only if you chase them with honesty, dedication and commitment," he said. He acknowledged the experience around him in the dressing room—the players and support staff who would help him navigate the role. His first assignment would come quickly: the ICC World Test Championship fixtures against New Zealand, scheduled for late December and early January in Mount Maunganui and Christchurch.
The PCB was preparing to send a 55-member contingent to New Zealand later that month. The full squad would be announced within days. For Babar, the transition from white-ball captain to leader across all formats represented a significant step, but one the board believed he was ready to take. For Azhar, it marked another chapter in a captaincy career defined by promise interrupted by circumstance.
Notable Quotes
I believe Azhar still has a lot of cricket left in him and Pakistan cricket can continue to make the best use of his experience and knowledge as a specialist top-order batsman moving forward.— Ehsan Mani, PCB chairman
I am ready and prepared to take up the additional responsibility and the thing that gives me additional confidence that I can do the job is the experience that is available to me in the changing room.— Babar Azam
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why did the PCB move so quickly after backing Azhar in May? That's only six months.
A series loss in England changes the calculus. The board had committed to him, but results on the field override those kinds of promises. Cricket boards live and die by performance.
Azhar scored a century in his final Test. Doesn't that suggest he was performing as a batsman?
It does. But captaincy and batting are evaluated separately. You can be a good player and a captain the board loses confidence in. The century came in a losing effort.
This is Azhar's second time stepping down from captaincy. Does that pattern matter?
It matters because it suggests something structural about how Pakistan uses its captains. They're brought in to fix things, then discarded when things don't improve quickly enough. Azhar became the fall guy twice.
Babar is only 26 and now leads in all three formats. Isn't that a lot of responsibility?
It is. But the board identified him as a future leader years ago. This consolidation—giving him all three formats at once—actually simplifies things. One voice, one vision, across the entire team.
What does "the experience available in the changing room" mean? Is that code for something?
It's Babar acknowledging that he's young and surrounded by older, more experienced players. He's saying he'll lean on them. It's a smart thing to say when you're taking over from someone with 81 Test appearances.