Internet Desk: Pakistan’s Test skipper Misbah-ul-Haq on Thursday said that he will retire after the upcoming Test series against West Indies.
“The series against the West Indies is my last series,” the 42-year-old veteran batsman told the reporters at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
Misbah, 42, has been under scanner since Pakistan were whitewashed in the Test series against New Zealand and Australia late last year to step down after a long and successful Test career as captain since late 2010.
“My cricket journey was very good… There were many hardships in my career but for now I am focusing on the present situation,” he said Thursday.
“The series against West Indies is a good opportunity to bring the team back on the winning track.”
Misbah in recent interviews made it clear that he had made up his mind but his wife and children still wanted him to carry on playing for Pakistan.
“I think a player is the best judge of when it is time for him to go. He knows whether he has the form, fitness and hunger for cricket to carry on or step down,” Misbah said in a recent interview.
Former captains and critics have been advising him to step down but he remains defiant in the face of criticism.
The PCB has already appointed wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfaraz Ahmad as the deputy to Misbah and he is expected to take over as Test captain after the series in West Indies.
Sarfaraz is already Pakistan captain in the limited-over formats of the game.