Inzamam accuses PCB of causing 'rift' within Pakistan team

Former cricketer Inzamamul Haq has accused the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) of causing rift within the Pakistan team by floating the idea of appointing a new Test captain.

Earlier this week, PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan said that team management under the supervision of head coach Misbahul Haq will review Azhar Ali’s captaincy before announcing the Test squad against New Zealand.

Inzamam, while speaking on his YouTube channel, said that PCB Chief Executive should have waited till the conclusion of Zimbabwe series to make the aforementioned statement.

"There is a new debate going on regarding Pakistan’s Test captaincy after PCB Chief Executive [Wasim Khan] said that they will review Azhar Ali’s captaincy before announcing the Test squad for New Zealand tour. Such statements can cause rift in the team. Any player who is in contention will start to lobby for himself and that disturbs the team environment. If you wanted to change the captain, you should have announced the change after the Zimbabwe series," said Inzamam.

"These gossips in the media regarding the change in captaincy are not required. Sometimes the board themselves leak such information in the media inorder to gauge the reaction from the media and fans. Board may get an idea about the public sentiment from doing this, but it negatively affects the team. This also disrupts the confidence and unity in the team," he added.

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It must be noted that Ali replaced wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfaraz Ahmed as the skipper in October last year but his meeting with Prime Minister Imran Khan, regarding changes in Pakistan’s domestic structure, could be one of the reasons why the PCB is keen on removing him from the role. Azhar had met PM Imran along with head coach Misbhaul Haq and veteran all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez, without informing the PCB, which did not go down well with the board’s top brass.