In an effort to get the team back on track for the Twenty20 World Cup this year, the Pakistan Cricket Board reappointed Babar Azam as white-ball captain on Sunday.
November of last year saw Azam resign from his position as captain of both formats after Pakistan was eliminated from the 50 over World Cup in India during the first round.
“Babar Azam appointed white ball captain,” the PCB announced on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Following unanimous recommendation from the PCB’s selection committee, chairman PCB Naqvi has appointed Azam as white-ball (T20Is and ODIs) captain of the Pakistan cricket team.”
The seven-member selection committee suggested he take Shaheen Shah Afridi’s position, having only been reorganized a week prior.
Pakistan struggled in last year’s dismal World Cup (50 overs) in India, finishing outside the semi-finals.
Subsequently, Azam relinquished his captaincy across all formats, with Shan Masood taking over as Test captain and Shaheen Shah Afridi as T20I captain.
After Mickey Arthur, the head coach at the time, was sacked, Pakistan lost a 4-1 series in a T20I series in New Zealand and a 3-0 Test series in Australia under team director Mohammad Hafeez.
Prior to participating in the World Cup in the United States and the West Indies, Pakistan will play five Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) against New Zealand at home, two in Ireland, and four in England.
Earlier this month, newly appointed PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi proposed changes to the selection procedure, including the captain and head coach, in an attempt to enhance results ahead of the tournament.
“We have reorganised the selection committee with seven members but the different thing is that there will be no chairman,” Naqvi told a press conference, adding that each member would have “equal powers”.
All-rounder Imad Wasim overturned his own decision to retire four months ago, while fast bowler Mohammad Amir also declared he was coming out of retirement.
Amir’s brilliant, erratic career came to an abrupt end in 2010 when he, fellow bowler Mohammad Asif, and then-Pakistan Test captain Salman Butt were all banned for five years due to a spot-fixing scam.
The team is now visiting Army Base Kakul for a two-week training camp.
