After Pakistan’s humiliating exit from the T20 World Cup 2026 Super 8 stage – marking their fourth successive ICC tournament without a semi-final appearance – captain Salman Ali Agha He held a hostile press conference in which he was faced with sharp questions about his future and whether he was just there “dummy captain” for the head coach Mike Hesson. PCB chairman despite mounting pressure and reports Mohsin Naqvi Agha, who had already decided to drive him away regardless of the outcome, was navigating the stormy waters with great composure.
Pakistan face defeat in Pallekele
The Green Men’s campaign came to a brutal end on Saturday despite beating the hosts Sri Lanka by five runs at Pallekele International Stadium. Chasing a semi-final ticket, Pakistan needed to restrict Sri Lanka to 147 or less to overhaul New Zealand’s net run rate. However, Dasun Shanaka’s unbeaten knock of 76 off 31 took the hosts to 207 and helped Pakistan to 212 all out.
This cancellation follows earlier failures in the 2023 ODI World Cup, 2024 T20 World Cup and 2025 Champions Trophy – a sad streak that has pushed Pakistan cricket into crisis mode.
‘Will you leave the captaincy yourself or will the PCB remove you?’
During the media frenzy after the match, a journalist asked a blunt question in Hindi: “Are you going to choose the captain yourself or remove the PCB?” (Will you leave the captaincy yourself or will the board remove you?).
Agha, who scored just 60 runs in six innings during the tournament, coolly replied: “I think we didn’t play at the right level in the World Cup. Right now, I think any decision made right now is going to be emotional. We’ll go back and take some time and make the right decision.”
The 32-year-old football player took responsibility for the team’s performance: “We will take all the responsibility. Why not? We participated in the selection of the team and we were responsible for the players. I will take the responsibility and I am sure the coach will also take it.”
The ‘dummy captain’ charge marred the press conference
A second reporter asked an even more provocative question and said that head coach Mike Hesson was getting Agha into shape. The journalist referred to Hesson’s public criticism of Babar Azam’s strike rate and its impact on selection and team strategy.
“The problem is, if I don’t answer it, you’re going to be disrespectful.” The master replied, visibly agitated, but maintaining his dignity. “When a team is formed, it is a team game. It is not formed by the decision of one person. It is the result of the decisions of all interested parties.”
Defending the controversial decision to demote Babar Azam to the fourth row, Agha explained: “Babar had a different role in this World Cup. He was No. 4; he had better experience. We needed a batsman who could come in the middle order and provide stability and save us from collapse.”
Agha candidly identified the root cause of Pakistan’s repeated failures in the ICC tournament: inability to handle pressure situations.
“You are absolutely right that we have not reached the semi-finals in the last four ICC tournaments. The reason is that we need to improve our game under pressure. When the pressure is on, how do we improve our decision-making? I think that is more important now.”
He added: “If you see the whole tournament, we have underperformed. In 20 overs, we bowled very well for 18 overs and the other team is allowed to bowl two overs well. But yes, our execution in the last three overs was not good. We are a better bowling unit than that. We missed our execution.”
Also READ: Former Pakistan cricketers in green react after Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 exit
PCB chairman ‘unhappy’ – Overhaul expected
Behind the scenes, PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has reportedly decided to remove Agha from the T20 captaincy regardless of the World Cup outcome. Multiple reports suggest that Naqvi is “unhappy” after being assured by the selectors and management that the team is ready for success.
A PCB source confirmed: “Naqvi is not happy at all because this time he has been assured by the selectors, the team management and his close aides in the board that the team will do well in the World Cup.”
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