PCB selector and youth development head Azhar Ali has resigned from his post after just 12 months. No official announcement of the resignation has been made by Azhar or the board. However, ESPNcricinfo confirmed this and said that there were long-standing differences between the former Pakistan captain and the board. The matter gained momentum when Sarfaraz Ahmed was reportedly appointed head of the Pakistan Shaheen and Under-19 teams, while Azhar also held similar responsibilities.
Azhar’s position is no longer good
In fact, Azhar Ali is believed to have felt that Sarfaraz was appointed to a role that was too similar to his own responsibilities. He felt his position was no longer appropriate. He submitted his resignation earlier this week, which was accepted by the PCB.
Azhar has also captained Pakistan in Tests and ODIs. He was first brought into the PCB fold in October 2024 as a member of the Pakistan men’s national team selection panel. A month later, he was given the role of Head of Youth Development, which the PCB publicly announced at the time.
The official announcement of his appointment on the PCB website stated that he was tasked with shaping the future of Pakistan cricket , which included designing and implementing a comprehensive youth cricket strategy, building a strong grassroots cricket structure and talent pathways, working closely with regional cricket associations to strengthen age-group programmes, educating budding cricketers under the PCB’s Pathways programme, and raising awareness about the need for off-field development for emerging players.
The next major assignment for Pakistan’s age-group team is the 2026 Under-19 World Cup, which will run from January 15 to February 6 in Zimbabwe and Namibia. Co-hosts Zimbabwe, Scotland, and England are in Pakistan’s group in this competition. Pakistan has won the title twice, in 2004
and 2006.
