Sarfaraz Ahmed. (Photo Source: Twitter/iMehakShahid)
Quetta Gladiators are in discussion with coach Shane Watson over a possible change in captaincy for PSL 2024. Notably, the franchise was extremely consistent in the earlier years but has been underperforming in recent times, which led to multiple discussions regarding a possible switch ahead of the next edition.
Gladiators owner Nadeem Omar recently said at the Relukattay podcast that he is “double-minded” regarding Sarfaraz as captain. He, however, reminded that the franchise would not behave like the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and dump him unceremoniously just like that but would honour him if they indeed decide to change the captain.
“Wherever I go, people ask me this. But our franchise is a bit different from the others in the sense that we have a very intimate relationship with these players. I understand cricketers have a shelf life, but I think over Pakistan history, we tend to dump players unceremoniously,” Omar was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
“Sarfaraz has been off the boil over the last couple of years. There are a lot of reasons for that – the way he was unceremoniously ousted by the PCB didn’t help, especially when he had a few more years. We won’t dump him unceremoniously. We haven’t decided yet, but we’ll give him full honours. Sarfaraz told me he would be happy to step aside if Quetta wants to make a change. We have a call with Shane Watson in a couple of days, and then we’ll decide,” he added.
Notably, Sarfaraz has led Quetta Gladiators since its inception in 2016. He helped the team qualify for the finals in the inaugural season and eventually won the trophy in 2019. However, since then, they have failed to qualify for the playoffs even once. Hence, the discussions have recently taken place over a possible change in captaincy and a decision will be made ahead of the new season, which is likely to begin in February.