Babar Azam reappointed as Pakistan's white-ball skipper ahead of T20 World Cup
Lahore, Mar 31: Star batter Babar Azam was on Sunday reappointed as Pakistan's white-ball captain, two months ahead of the T20 World Cup.
Babar replaces fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi as the T20 captain. The pacer has been removed after just one series which Pakistan lost 1-4 to New Zealand in January.
The decision to reinstate Babar was taken after a unanimous recommendation from the Pakistan Cricket Board's (PCB) selection committee.
"Following unanimous recommendation from the PCB's selection committee, Chairman PCB Mohsin Naqvi has appointed Babar Azam as white-ball (ODI and T20I) captain of the Pakistan men's cricket team," the PCB said in a media release.
During a recent meeting in Lahore with PCB Chief Naqvi, Babar allegedly sought assurances about his tenure and asked to be appointed captain of the Test side as well.
However, a reliable source within the PCB disclosed that Naqvi clarified the board's stance, indicating that while Babar would be given a proper run in the white-ball formats a decision on the Test captaincy will be made later.
Shan Masood is currently leading the red ball team.
"Naqvi made it clear to Babar that PCB will decide on the Test captaincy after appointing the red ball foreign coach and Pakistan has no Test commitments until after the World Cup," the source added.
Babar had stepped down as captain from all three formats after a disappointing outing at the ODI World Cup in India in November last year.
He had relinquished his role after the then PCB Chief Zaka Ashraf told him he would no longer be captain the white-ball formats and would only lead the Test team.
Under Babar's captaincy, Pakistan reached the final of the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia. The latest edition of the marquee event will begin on June 1 in the USA and the West Indies.
The source said the announcement was made after selectors -- Muhammad Yousuf, Asad Shafiq, Wahab Riaz, Abdul Razzaq and Bilal Afzal -- met with Shaheen in the training camp in Kakul on Saturday evening and informed him that they wanted him to focus on his bowling and felt it was better if a batter leads the white ball teams.
Insiders revealed that Shaheen accepted the change and didn't protest much but pointed out that it was unfair on him to be judged on just one series.
According to the source, Shaheen's inability to effectively lead the Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League, resulting in their last-place finish, coupled with his own inconsistent performance, were key factors influencing the decision to replace him.
"The PCB Chairman had made it clear to the selectors that they must decide who should be the captain and also said they would be answerable for the performances of the national team in the future," the source added.
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Egg-donation racket targeting poor women busted in Maharashtra's Thane; 3 held
Thane (PTI): Police have unearthed an egg-donation racket, suspected to be involving crores of rupees, that repeatedly exploited vulnerable women in Maharashtra's Thane district, officials said.
The victims were offered Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 per cycle and repeatedly used as egg donors, resulting in physical exploitation. They were taken to IVF centres where the eggs were surgically extracted and sold for lakhs, they said, adding that so far, 20 women are believed to have fallen prey to the racket.
Three women have been arrested in connection with the illegal trade operating out of a residential apartment and a sonography centre at Joveli in Badlapur East, the police officials said on Saturday.
Egg donation is a fertility procedure where a woman provides eggs for another person to conceive, usually via IVF (in vitro fertilisation). The donor undergoes screening and hormone treatment, eggs are retrieved, fertilised, and transferred to the recipient.
The arrested persons have been identified as Sulakshana Gadekar (44), Ashwini Chabukswar (29), and Manjusha Wankhede (46).
Following a tip-off from a victim to Thane Sub-District Hospital's Chief Medical Officer Dr Jyotsna Sawant, a raid was recently conducted at Gadekar’s residence in Nano City building, the police said.
“We recovered photos of injections used in connection with pregnancy, sonography reports, affidavits with false names, fake documents, and evidence of financial transactions on the mobile phones of the accused,” a police official said.
The accused targeted needy women, paying them Rs 25,000 to 30,000 per cycle. The victims were allegedly administered hormonal injections to increase egg production and were repeatedly used as donors, leading to physical exploitation, the official said.
“The process involved injecting the women to stimulate egg production and taking them for sonography. Once the eggs were ready, the victims were sent to IVF centres where the eggs were surgically extracted and sold for lakhs of rupees,” the official added.
Ulhasnagar Deputy Commissioner of Police Sachin Gore said that more than 20 women might have fallen victim to this racket so far.
“The racket was previously operating in Vangani before shifting to Badlapur recently. We are investigating the involvement of IVF centres, doctors, and hospitals. High-profile names are likely to surface as the turnover of this illegal trade is estimated to be in crores,” Gore said.
A case has been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, the police added.
