Former Pakistani skipper Rashid Latif has held coach Mike Hesson responsible for removing wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan as the skipper of the team for supporting Palestine in the Israel-Gaza conflict.
“Would sack him only for openly picking up the Palestine flag?” Latif was quoted as saying in a social media interview which has now gone viral.
“A mindset can now be seen that a non-Islamic captain should come in an Islamic country,” he said.
“Mike Hesson has taken the decision. He isn’t someone who likes this culture in the dressing room,” he said.
“He has a team of 5-6 people. He wants to finish such a culture in the dressing room,” he said.
Months after a poor show in the Champions Trophy, the Pakistan Cricket Board has removed Rizwan as the ODI captain and replaced him with Shaheen Shah Afridi.
The pacer will lead the national side in the upcoming three-match series against South Africa, which starts on Nov. 4.
Rizwan was named the Pakistani team captain in 2024 after the removal of Babar Azam.
“Shaheen’s appointment for the upcoming series was finalised today following a meeting held in Islamabad, which was attended by white-ball head coach Mike Hesson, Director High Performance Aqib Javed and members of the selection committee,” a short press release by the PCB said, as quoted by Dawn News.
Afridi has played 66 ODIs and 92 T20Is, taking a combined 249 wickets.
In Test matches, he has taken 120 wickets in his career by playing 32 matches so far.
