Sarfaraz Ahmed has been sacked as Pakistan's Test and T20I captain ahead of the November-December tour of Australia, and has also been dropped from both the teams following a run of poor form in the two formats. In his place, Azhar Ali has been named the Test captain and Babar Azam leader of the T20I side. Sarfaraz will, however, continue to lead Pakistan's ODI side.

Azhar's appointment is for the 2019-20 World Test Championship matches, while Babar will be in charge of the T20I side till at least the men's T20 World Cup in Australia late next year.

Sarfaraz's dismissal follows a dismal run for Pakistan, who are currently at No. 7 in the ICC Test rankings. In their most recent Test series, they were swept 3-0 away in South Africa in December-January, and, prior to that, had lost a three-Test series at 'home' in the UAE 2-1 to New Zealand. In T20Is too, Pakistan suffered an embarrassing 3-0 defeat at home earlier this month in Lahore in the hands of a Sri Lanka side without a number of their top players.

Ehsan Mani, the Pakistan Cricket Board's chairman, called the decision to sack Sarfaraz from the two formats as a "difficult" one.

"It has been a difficult decision to drop Sarfaraz Ahmed, who has performed well as a player and a leader," Mani said in a statement released by the PCB. "But, his loss in form and confidence is visible and, in the best interest of the team, it has been decided to leave him out and provide him the opportunity to reflect and regroup himself and try to reclaim his form away from international cricket.

"Sarfaraz Ahmed's contributions are second to none and being the gutsy cricketer and fighter that we all know he is, I have no doubts he will be back in Pakistan colours at some stage."

Pakistan did win five of their nine games at the 50-over World Cup in England and Wales this year, and only failed to qualify for the knockouts because of New Zealand's superior net run-rate, and have since beaten Sri Lanka 2-0 in a three-ODI series in Karachi, results that have helped Sarfaraz hold on to the job in the format.

"It has been an honour to lead Pakistan at the highest level. I want to thank all my colleagues, coaches and selectors who have helped me in this journey. My good wishes are with Azhar Ali, Babar Azam and the Pakistan cricket team, and I hope they will continue to grow stronger and stronger," Sarfaraz said.

Azhar is a veteran of 73 Tests, in which he has 5669 runs, and is second on the list of highest run-getters in the ongoing Quaid-e-Azam first-class tournament in Pakistan with 388 runs in four matches.

"There is no bigger honour than to captain the Pakistan national cricket team in the pinnacle format of the game," he said. "I feel humbled, excited and privileged, and with the support of the team, look forward to justifying the faith that has been entrusted upon me for the World Test Championship.

"Sarfaraz Ahmed has done an excellent job in transforming raw talent into experienced players and I now look forward to inspiring those skillful players in our endeavours to collectively achieve our World Test Championship objectives and beyond. These are exciting times in Pakistan cricket with a new team management. As a captain, I feel comfortable that there will be number of knowledgeable people in the hut who I can rely for advice and guidance.

"I am not only targeting wins, but also aim to provide opportunities to players to grow in stature and express themselves so that Pakistan cricket can resume its journey to the top. I have always played my cricket the hard way but in a fair manner, and will ensure I continue to uphold the spirit of cricket and enhance the image of the team and the country."

Babar, meanwhile, also has a tough job in his hands despite being handed the reins of the No. 1 side in T20Is - he is the No. 1 batsman in the world in the format too - but he called the elevation "the biggest thing" to have happened in his career.

"To be named captain of the No. 1-ranked side in the world is the biggest thing that has happened to my career to date," he said. "I am ready for this challenge and also willing to learn more in the process. I feel it has been a natural progression for me and I am delighted that the PCB has put faith in my capabilities.

"Sarfaraz Ahmed has led the side in the shortest format by example and it is my responsibility to take forward his accomplishments so that we remain a consistent, attractive and powerful side."