Sohail replaces Rashid Latif and Miandad takes over from Haroon Rasheed with both outgoing officials said to be paying the price for the team's dismal performance in South Africa and Zimbabwe earlier this year.

``Initially the two have been assigned the jobs until the series against Zimbabwe but the board would like them to continue until the World Cup to be staged England in June 1999,'' PCB chairman Khalid Mahmood said.

Sohail becomes the ninth Pakistan captain in this decade. This year he led Pakistan to victory against South Africa at Durban, replacing an injured Rashid Latif, in the one-all drawn series.

Previously, the left-hander also skippered Pakistan in the World Cup quarter-finalagainst India and later led Pakistan to victory at Singapore over world champions Sri Lanka and arch-rivals India.

Miandad retired after playing in a record sixth World Cup in 1996. His last Test was in 1993-94 against Zimbabwe but he still remains highest scorer for Pakistan with 8,832 runs and 23 centuries in 124 Tests.

But Sohail has a history of controversy behind him, including his verbal confrontation with PCB chief executive Majid Khan that ended in a one-month ban last year.

The ban was extended to three months including a cash fine of 50,000 rupees when he accused his own team-mates of betting and match-fixing in a newspaper interview.

Second string squad for Commonwealth Games: The council also approved a second string Pakistani team to participate in the Commonwealth Games at Kuala Lumpur.

It contains only six Test players and three internationals. The main string players have been reserved for the Sahara Cup against India in Toronto, Canada, from September 12 to 20.

``The Sahara Cup ismore important to us as we play India there. It was decided well in advance that Pakistan would send a second eleven to Malaysia,'' Khalid Mahmood said.

The Kuala Lumpur squad: Salim Elahi (captain), Basit Ali, Suleman Huda, Kashif Ahmad, Azhar Shafiq, Akhtar Sarfaraz, Taimur Khan, Jave Qadeer (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Javed, Abdul Razzaq, Shoaib Akhtar, Shahid Nazir, Arshad Khan and Mohammad Husain.