PCB announce Sarfraz Ahmed as new Pakistan Test captain

Reuters

New Delhi: After the retirement of skipper Misbah-ul-Haq and veteran Younis Khan, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced the appointment of Sarfraz Ahmed as the new Test captain.

Sarfraz, who successfully led the ODI side to ICC Champions Trophy triumph in England last month, was widely considered as the front-runner in the job and was backed by many to take up the role in all divisions.

The board handing the captaincy role to Sarfraz seems like a reward for his recent performances which got the best out of the squad, who was ranked No. 8 going into the ICC mega event.

With the threat of missing out on a place in the 2019 World Cup looming, Pakistan defeated South Africa, Sri Lanka, England and India enroute winning the title after suffering a massive defeat to Virat Kohli and Co. in the tournament opener.

Sarfraz was also named as the captain of ICC Champions Trophy team of the tournament.

Pakistan might have struggled to assert dominance in the limited overs' cricket off late, but they are still a force to be reckoned in Test cricket. Plying their trade as UAE as home venue, Pakistan had recently become the No. 1 side in the format before being dethroned by India and eventually sipping down to current 6th position.

What remains to be a big task for Sarfraz will be filling the big shoes of Misbah and Younis, considering he has a very young squad at his disposal but with the promise he and the whole squad has shown recently, it can certainly be achieved