Wahab Riaz Appointed As Chief Selector Of Pakistan Cricket Team

Wahab Riaz has been appointed as the chief selector of the Pakistan cricket team.

Wahab Riaz. (Image source: Twitter)

Former fast bowler of Pakistan, Wahab Riaz, has been named the senior men's team's main selector. His hiring coincides with Inzamam-ul-Haq's resignation from the post due to alleged conflicts of interest and following significant setup modifications following an inadequate ODI World Cup campaign.

Wahab will begin his new role in advance of the December–January three-match Test series in Australia, which will be followed by a five-match T20I series in New Zealand in January. Wahab hasn't formally retired from franchise cricket, but his PSL side, Peshawar Zalmi, thanked him in a tweet on Friday for his "exceptional services to the team" and added, "thank you for your countless contributions over the past 8 years and you will always remain an integral part of Zalmi family". (Babar Azam Posts Photo Of Little Girl Holding Palestine Flag In a Twitter Post For Gaza)

Former cricketer Mohammad Hafeez will serve as Pakistan's head coach for the upcoming Australia and New Zealand tour, according to a report by ESPNcricinfo. Hafeez was appointed as the Pakistan team director. Earlier, Mickey Arthur held the post until a reshuffle took place followed by Babar Azam's resignation as the captain.

As per ESPNcricinfo, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will now merge the post of team director and head coach. As of now, Hafeez will play a dual role in their upcoming three Test matches in Australia and five T20Is in New Zealand which will take place in December and January respectively.

Hafeez was recently part of the PCB Cricket Technical Committee. The former all-rounder was part of the Pakistan Men's team which won the ICC Champions Trophy in England in 2017. (Rohit Sharma Inspects Pitch At Narendra Modi Stadium's Pitch At Ahmedabad Ahead Of Big Final, Photo Goes Viral)

The PCB has changed the portfolio of the Pakistan coaching staff. All coaches will continue to work in National Cricket Academy while PCB will announce the new coaching staff in due course for the upcoming series in Australia and New Zealand.

Star Pakistan batter Babar Azam on Wednesday announced his decision to step down as Pakistan captain from all formats of the game after his side's debacle in the ICC World Cup 2023 in India. (Cricket World Cup 2023: Team India's Road To Final Vs Australia - In Pics)

Pakistan suffered five defeats out of their nine matches and one at the hands of arch-rival India by seven wickets at the ODI World Cup 2023. In their last league match of the tournament, the 'Men in Green' started proceedings knowing that they had the slimmest of chances of still reaching the SFs, requiring a win by an enormous margin to force a gargantuan swing on net run rate. However, the possibility of such a result soon disappeared as the 2019 champions England built a sizeable first-innings score and registered a 93-run win.

Earlier this week, Morne Morkel resigned as the bowling coach of the Pakistan Men's team. The former South Africa fast bowler joined the Pakistan team on a six-month contract in June this year.

"I am honoured to assume the role of chairperson for the national men's selection committee and I extend my gratitude to the Chairman of PCB Management Committee, Zaka Ashraf, for entrusting me with this responsibility. The decision to involve former players in cricketing matters is commendable and I am willing to work for the betterment of Pakistan cricket," Wahab Riaz said in an official statement released by PCB.

"Heading a selection committee is a challenging task. We have a significant Australia tour coming up that is part of the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 cycle and a T20I series against New Zealand that will allow us to develop a formidable unit leading up to the ICC T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies in June next year," he added.

"I have a good rapport with the Pakistan Men's Team Director Mohammad Hafeez and we will be working closely for the success of Pakistan cricket. My primary goal would be to give weightage to the top performers in domestic cricket and announce well-rounded squads equipped with the necessary skill sets. I will always be available to the players for feedback and advice," Riaz added.

Pakistan failed to make it to the semi-final of the 2023 World Cup, with only four wins in nine games taking them to the 5th spot in the table. (With ANI inputs)