Who will be Pakistan’s next Test Captain?
Losing a Test match against Zimbabwe had always been a bad
omen for Pakistan captains. Current Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq led his team
in a humiliating defeat in Harare this weekend. Would he meet the same fate
that Saleem Malik and Aamer Sohail -- two of his predecessors met when they
lost a Test match to Zimbabwe? Both lost the job and their Test careers were
over soon.
Saleem Malik was Pakistan captain when Zimbabwe achieved its
first ever Test match win at Harare in 1995 by an inning and 64 runs at Harare
– Zimbabwe’s biggest win so far. Though his team bounced back and won next two
Tests to win the series 2-1, he was sacked and was never asked to lead Pakistan
team again. Subsequently he hanged around for another four years but was never
a regular part of the team.
Aamer Sohail’s fate was even more tragic. He suffered a Test
defeat at Peshawar in 1998 – Zimbabwe’s only win in an away Test match and
series. He was sacked and was not selected for next two years. After a brief
comeback two seasons later when he could play only two Test matches, his career
was completely sealed at the age of 34.
Two Indian captains who lost a Test match against Zimbabwe
had different fates. Mohammad Azharuddin’s was similar to his Pakistani
counterparts when his side was defeated in 1998 while Sourav Ganguly led India
for another four years after his loss in 2001. Bangladesh is the only other
team apart from Pakistan and India to taste defeat at the hands of Zimbabwe.
They have lost six Test matches, three under captaincy of Naimur Rahman and one
apiece under Habibul Bashar, Shakib Al Hassan and Mushfiqur Rahim. However,
Bangladesh is a weaker side than Zimbabwe in Test cricket so a loss does not
cause any storm there.
Pakistan has a tradition of sacking the captain in the aftermath
of any shocking defeat and the history often gets itself repeated. What will be
fate of Misbah-ul-Haq who is about to celebrate his 40th birthday in
May next year? Not surprisingly it is hanging in the balance and he would be
extremely lucky if he gets away with it. In case Misbah-ul-Haq is sacked, who
will be the next Pakistan captain?
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