The end of Masood’s tenure brings down the curtain on a historically poor stint. Appointed nearly three years ago, Masood captained Pakistan in 16 Tests and lost 12 of them. No captain in Test history has ever lost 12 of their first 16 Tests, and despite ten men having captained Pakistan in more Tests, only Misbah-ul-Haq, who lost 19 of his 56 Tests, has overseen more defeats than Masood. They have also lost their last seven Tests, the joint-highest across Pakistan’s history.

Aaqib Javed, Pakistan’s high-performance director, said it was the repetitive nature of Pakistan’s Test defeats, and their tendency to give up winning positions, that led them to decide they needed a change at the helm.

“Shan’s own performance during his tenure has been good, but as captain, he has not been able to bring the desired results. We wanted to look for a captain who comes in and leads the team better”

Aaqib Javed

“The captain has a responsibility of finishing games. Same with the South Africa Tests at home. Some things are the responsibility of the team, some are the responsibility of the selectors, and some are the responsibility of the captain. The captain’s responsibility also includes maintaining the team’s over rate, taking DRS decisions, making the right call at the toss.”

That Masood kept his place in the side was a reflection of his personal form with the bat, which has seen an upswing with the armband on. His average as captain rose to 34.06, nearly six runs higher than the 28.51 before his appointment. It included two centuries, one in South Africa, as well as seven half-centuries, including two in a game at the MCG.

Aaqib said the change of change of captaincy was a separate decision to Masood’s place in the team. “Shan’s own performance during his tenure has been good, but as captain, he has not been able to bring the desired results,” Aaqib said. “We wanted to look for a captain who comes in and leads the team better.”

Pakistan’s decision to return to Babar, the man from whom Masood took over, perhaps reflects the dearth of attractive candidates the PCB had available. In the years since he was last captain in 2023, Babar has struggled with his form across formats, but especially in Test cricket, where he has averaged just over 27 under Masood.

His time as captain of Pakistan, however, was a markedly happier stint – Pakistan won ten of the 20 Tests Babar led in, starting off with a 2-0 home win over South Africa, and included clean sweeps away from home in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It was also when Babar’s form with the bat was close to its best; as captain, he averaged over 50 in Test cricket. However, there was still plenty of disappointment, too, most notably a crushing 3-0 home series whitewash at England’s hands, the only such defeat in Pakistan’s Test history.

Babar takes over at a busy time in Test cricket. The series against the West Indies is immediately followed by a three-match series in England, Pakistan’s first to the country in six years. A busy home winter season comes soon after, and includes Tests against New Zealand and Sri Lanka.