‘We persuaded him’ – Najam Sethi reveals how Shahid Afridi agreed to become chief selector of PCB
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) named former captain Shahid Afridi as the interim chief of the National Selection Committee last week. Afridi’s appointment came amid several changes in the PCB management as Ramiz Raja was removed from the chairman post. A 14-member committee headed by Najam Sethi has been appointed to run the board for the next four months.
The Pakistan government, through a notification last week, removed Raja following the national team’s 3-0 whitewash by England in the Test series. The notification, issued by Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, has to be approved by the federal cabinet, which is just a formality.
Now, Sethi has opened up on the reason behind selecting Afridi as the chief selector.
“Shahid (Afridi) is a busy man. We persuaded him after a lot of effort. I am very grateful that he agreed. He understood there was need to do the job. Shahid is very aggressive, dynamic. His approach is very upfront, he played with a lot of passion. We also need to do the same,” Najam Sethi said in an interview uploaded on Pakistan Cricket’s YouTube channel.
“There will be losses and wins in a game. But we cannot go forward with a timid approach. We don’t how many bowlers to play. We thought batting was an issue, but on these (Pakistan’s) pitches bowling is also an issue. Keeping that in mind we though Shahid is the best man. And some of the changes that has been done, like bringing in Sarfaraz Ahmed (for the second Test against New Zealand).”
Shahid Afridi had an illustrious international career
Shahid Afridi 27 Tests, 398 ODIs and 99 T20Is for Pakistan. He has scored 1716 runs in Tests, 8064 runs in ODI and 14616 in T20Is. He has also picked 48 wickets in Tests, 395 in ODIs, and 98 wickets in T20Is. He holds the record for most sixes in ODI having 351 sixes to his name in 369 innings.
Afridi won the ‘Player of the tournament’ award in the inaugural 20-20 World Cup in 2007. He was the fourth-highest wicket-taker in the tournament, picking up 12 scalps at an average of 15.66. Afridi also scored 91 runs in 7 matches, with the highest score of 46.
He was awarded ‘Player of the match’ as he scored a brilliant 54 in the final of the 2009 20-20 World Cup to help Pakistan win their first 20-20 World Cup. The all rounder also holds the record for the second best ODI bowling figures of 7/12 in nine overs.
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