Former Pakistan Captain and legendary all-rounder Wasim Akram shows his support for the struggling ODI captain of Pakistan Azhar Ali saying that he should be given more time to prove himself as a leader. He said that Azhar should be given a run for at least 30 to 35 matches, though he is aware that the opening batsman has led Pakistan in close to 20-25 matches matches already, but feels that he should be given some more time before taking a final call. The sultan of swing also expressed his views on the new T20I skipper Sarfraz Ahmed, insisting that the young wicketkeeper-batsman led the Pakistan team well in the only T20 match against England, and is a good prospect for future.

Wasim said although Sarfraz seemed to have worked well with team, the decision to make him the ODI captain immediately would be premature, and would put a lot of pressure on the young wicketkeeper-batsman.

Former T20I skipper and star all-rounder Shahid Afridi also echoed Wasim’s thoughts and said that Azhar’s individual performance wasn’t bad during the ODI series against England, however he needs to improve his captaincy going forward, but he wouldn’t suggest the PCB to make Sarfraz the ODI captain as well as that would be too early and will put too much burden on him.

Azhar Ali’s captaincy came under scrutiny following the Pakistan team’s 4-1 loss to England. Azhar was ineffective as a captain in the series but will be relived after getting the support of his former senior players.