Advertisement
Advertisement
Lahore Qalandars CEO Atif Rana has finally addressed the long-standing speculation surrounding the appointment of Shaheen Shah Afridi as captain and whether former Pakistan skipper Imran Khan had a hand in it.
Shaheen, just 21 at the time, was a surprising choice when Lahore Qalandars named him captain in 2021.
In an exclusive chat with a local sports outlet, Atif Rana clarified that the decision to hand over the reins to Shaheen had nothing to do with Imran Khan.
“Shaheen was made captain by Sameen [Rana],” Atif revealed. “Our team think tank took that decision collectively, and Sameen played a key role in it.”
He explained that while they did meet Imran Khan, who was Prime Minister at the time, the meeting happened after the captaincy decision had already been made.
“We had a meeting with Imran Khan after we made Shaheen Afridi the captain,” Atif said. “At that time, Imran Khan praised our decision and told Shaheen, ‘If you keep playing like this, you will rule world cricket for the next 8 to 10 years.’”
Atif Rana recalled an interesting take from the 1992 World Cup-winning captain. He also shared that even though Imran wasn’t involved in the actual decision-making, his validation meant a lot to the Qalandars camp.
“Imran Khan said he doesn’t consider batsmen as captains, he believes a true captain is a bowler,” he shared. “Hearing such words from such a legend was very special for us and for Shaheen as well.”
Prior to appointing Shaheen Afridi as captain, the franchise had endured a dismal run in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), finishing at the bottom in five out of six seasons from 2016 to 2021.
But the young pacer turned the tide, leading the Qalandars to their maiden PSL title in 2022 and remarkably defending it in 2023, making them the first team in the league’s history to win back-to-back titles.
READ: Inzamam-ul-Haq shares what Babar Azam needs to turn things around
