Just a day after Azhar Mahmood was named Pakistan’s acting red-ball head coach, former cricketer Basit Ali has stirred the pot with explosive claims about backdoor shifts in PCB decision-making.
🔹 Official Line: The Pakistan Cricket Board confirmed on Monday that Mahmood, 50, will lead the Test side until his contract expires in April 2026. He takes charge as Pakistan kicks off its WTC 2025–27 campaign with Test series against South Africa (home) and Bangladesh (away).
🔹 Basit’s Revelation: Speaking on a YouTube channel, Basit Ali claimed Misbah-ul-Haq was originally finalised as head coach — until internal lobbying shifted momentum.
“Misbah was locked in, but Aaqib Javed and skipper Salman Ali Agha backed Azhar Mahmood — that swung the vote,”
he said.
🔹 Power Play: According to Basit, it was Salman Agha’s support that clinched the deal for Mahmood.
“Some things can’t be said openly — but this was no coincidence,”
he added cryptically.
🔹 Coaching Chaos: Basit also slammed the PCB for its erratic coaching policies, questioning the delayed announcement and why previously appointed mentors were prematurely removed despite multi-year contracts. “If contracts could be cut short for mentors, why not here?” he asked.
🔹 Call for Fairness: “You can’t have double standards. If you paid off mentors after one year, why not apply the same principle to others?” Basit concluded, urging the PCB to apply one rule for all.