Lahore, Nov 10 (IANS): Pakistan on Tuesday replaced Azhar Ali with Babar Azam as Test captain. Azam, who was already leading Pakistan in ODIs and T20 Internationals, will captain Pakistan in the ICC World Test Championship fixtures against New Zealand, which will be played in Mount Maunganui and Christchurch from December 26-30 and January 3-7, respectively.

PCB chairman Ehsan Mani confirmed the appointment following a meeting with Azhar Ali on Tuesday evening. Ali had led Pakistan in the recent Tests in England where the tourists lost the three-match series 1-0.

"Babar Azam was identified at a very young age as a future leader and as part of his progression and development, he was appointed white-ball captain last year. With his consistent performance and leadership skills, he has demonstrated that he is ready to take on the additional responsibilities of a captain," said Mani.

Mani added that the decision to give captaincy to Babar had been taken keeping in the mind the future.

"As we are looking into the future, it is appropriate that we appoint him the captain now so that he continues to grow stronger with every match," said Mani.

Babar, on Tuesday, led Pakistan to a 3-0 T20I series sweep over Zimbabwe.