ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s under-fire skipper Babar Azam said this week that it was ultimately up to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to decide whether he should continue as the national squad’s captain or not, following his team’s dismal performance in the ongoing T20 World Cup. 

Cricket analysts and commentators have called on Azam to step down as skipper after Pakistan failed to qualify for the second round of the T20 World Cup 2024. 

The green shirts crashed out of the World Cup after consecutive losses to minnows United States and arch-rivals India. The United States and India ultimately ended up qualifying for the Super Eight stage of the tournament from Group A, with Pakistan notching victories only against Canada and Ireland. 

Speaking to reporters at a news conference on Monday, Azam said the PCB decided to appoint him captain after pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi’s brief stint as skipper ended this year. 

“When I go back, we will discuss all that has happened here. And if I have to leave the captaincy, I will announce it openly,” he said.

“I will not hide behind anything. Whatever happens will happen in the open. But for now, I have not thought about it. It is eventually PCB’s decision.”

Cricket commentators have blamed Azam for Pakistan’s failure to perform impressively at the mega tournament. Many have questioned his captaincy decisions while most have criticized him for choosing underperforming stars in the playing XI. 

“We win and lose as a team. You are pointing out that [I am] the captain, but I cannot play in every player’s place. There are 11 players, and each of them has a role,” Azam explained.

“That’s why they came here to play the World Cup. I think we have not been able to play well as a team. We have to settle down and accept that we didn’t play well as a team,” he added. 

Azam admitted that though the team performed well in patches, fans were right to be disappointed with them. 

“Everybody is disappointed. We are as disappointed as the fans. It is not one individual’s fault,” he said.