Pakistan National Selector Aaqib Javed has defended the PCB’s decision to overhaul its Test setup midway through the England series while accepting responsibility for selecting the original touring squad, as criticism grows over the scale and timing of the changes.
Pakistan head into the third Test at Birmingham having already surrendered the series following defeats by an innings and 103 runs at Headingley and 194 runs at Lord’s. The response has been extensive: seven players have been released, Head Coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and Bowling Coach Umar Gul have been removed, and Mike Hesson and Ashley Noffke have been handed responsibility for the Test side for the final match.
Javed accepts responsibility for Pakistan squad
The restructuring has put Pakistan’s decision-making hierarchy under scrutiny, including the role of the selection committee that assembled the 17-player squad for England. Javed, speaking on Geo News programme Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath, said: “When we select a team, we sit with the coach and captain and build a squad. We are absolutely prepared to take responsibility for that squad.”
ساری دنیا میں جگ ہنسائی مگر ذمے داری صرف کھلاڑیوں،کپتان اورکوچ کی؟بورڈ کی کوئی ذمہ داری نہیں ؟دیکھیے عاقب جاوید کا انٹرویو pic.twitter.com/36vNGeZara
— Shahzeb Khanzada (@shazbkhanzdaGEO) September 1, 2026
Responsibility for the touring party, however, was only one part of the selection process outlined by Javed. Once a series begins, decisions over how the available resources are deployed shift to the requirements of individual matches. He added: “But when you go on tour, you have to make the kind of combination you need from match to match.”
Javed had raised the possibility of changing Pakistan’s pace attack before the second Test, including the use of Ubaid Shah to provide a different option from Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali and Khurram Shahzad. The touring squad also contained alternatives that could have changed its balance, including an additional wicketkeeping option and an all-rounder.
The selector said communication had taken place when the preferred approach was not being followed: “When decisions are not being made according to the plan, messages are conveyed that the playing XI needs to be corrected.”
Series defeat triggers mid-tour overhaul
The PCB opted against waiting until the end of the England tour to act. Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman, Aamir Jamal, Muhammad Awais Zafar and Khurram Shahzad were released ahead of the final Test, with a group of replacement players brought into the squad.
Javed maintained that the original group had been chosen on the strength of the players available and their performances at the time. But with England taking an unassailable 2-0 lead, he argued there was still value in altering Pakistan’s approach before the series concluded. Javed said: “Now that you have lost the series, having lost both Test matches, there is no harm in changing your mindset for the third Test.”
The changes are intended to give other players an opportunity in Birmingham rather than continuing unchanged after two substantial defeats. Javed added: “You can show the world that we still have talent.”
Pakistan’s overhaul has extended beyond the playing group. Hesson, already the white-ball Head Coach, has taken charge of the Test side following Sarfaraz’s departure, while Noffke has replaced Gul in the coaching setup. Selection committee member Misbah-ul-Haq has also decided to resign.
Javed puts focus on player performance
Javed’s defence of the changes also centred on the standards expected from established players. His position was that previous performances could justify initial selection without guaranteeing players an indefinite place when results and individual form deteriorated.
He said: “If you do not bring about any changes within it, then the problem becomes that the same players keep playing but do not perform.”
The PCB’s intervention therefore represents more than a change of personnel for the final Test. Javed framed the decision around the level of performance expected when Pakistan undertake major overseas assignments, rather than treating selection as fixed for the duration of a tour. He continued: “When you go on tour and play a series like this, you have to raise your performance, you have to compete, and you have to perform in important tours. There has to be a visible effort from the team.”
Individual development remains part of that equation regardless of decisions taken by selectors or coaches. Javed noted: “At the end of the day, whatever the selector or coach does, the player has to improve himself day by day.”
Imam’s departure carries an additional dimension because the PCB is set to examine the calf injury that prevented him from batting in either innings at Lord’s. The opener was among the seven players released, but his injury inquiry is a separate issue within the wider changes made after the second Test.
Saeed Ajmal challenges PCB decision-makers
The scale of the reshuffle has also prompted criticism over why accountability has fallen on some members of the Test setup while others remain in their positions. Former Pakistan cricketer Saeed Ajmal has questioned both the timing of the changes and the PCB’s treatment of its senior decision-makers.
🚨 Saeed Jamal’s Strong Statement:
“You changed the team and removed the coaches, but why haven’t you removed people like Aaqib Javed, who have ruined Pakistan cricket?” pic.twitter.com/gnc5bprvL0
— Talha Nawaz (@TalhaDigital007) September 1, 2026
Ajmal also challenged the decision to remove Sarfaraz while expanding Hesson’s responsibilities. Speaking on his YouTube channel, he said: “Sarfaraz has been removed from the coaching staff, but you are praising Mike Hesson. What results has Mike Hesson delivered in white-ball cricket?”
His criticism extended directly to Javed’s continued position within the PCB after players and coaches were removed. Ajmal added: “You changed the team and removed the coaches, but why haven’t you removed people like Aaqib Javed, who have ruined Pakistan cricket?”
The competing positions leave the PCB’s overhaul facing an immediate test at Edgbaston. Pakistan will enter the third and final Test on September 9 with a reshaped squad and coaching setup, seeking a response after England established an unassailable 2-0 series lead.
