Pakistan star batsman Babar Azam is attracting growing criticism after consecutive nondescript performances. Cricketing legend Zaheer Abbas, often considered the “Asian Bradman” for his match-winning batting skills, himself spoke of publicly demanding Babar’s exclusion from the Pakistan Test squad when he spoke at the Cricket Predicta Conclave in Ajman, UAE.
Abbas’s comments were prompted by the fact that Babar was declining in form for the immediate period of the Test series against Bangladesh, where he could muster only 64 runs from four innings. The series did not go well with Pakistan, and Babar’s woes saw him losing his position in the ICC Test batmen’s rankings—a position he had maintained for years.
“Babar Azam should be dropped from the team if he’s not scoring runs,” Abbas asserted. “He is our main batsman, but if he’s out of form, he must step aside.” In a piece of horrible news for Pakistan, they did not even qualify for the Super 12 stage of the 2024 T20 World Cup following back-to-back defeats against the USA and India at the group stage.
Whispers start doing the rounds about a leadership change. PCB will discuss Babar’s role, especially with the white-ball format, before the Pakistan tour of Australia in November. Another debate going the rounds is that of comparison between Babar and India’s Virat Kohli has been up in the air as Abbas mentioned in an interview, “Both Virat and Babar have the same mentality and style of playing. It depends on how much influence you can put into your bowling.”.
“The comparison between Babar and Virat is baseless,” Abbas said while talking to media. “Kohli scores in almost every match, while Babar’s form is inconsistent. You cannot compare a player who is consistently performing to one who isn’t.”
Pakistan will face the Test series against England, which will take place from October 7 in Multan. So, Shan Masood will be the captain of the side while Saud Shakeel, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Shah Afridi are the prominent players of this squad.
With the challenge of Pakistan’s campaign in the World Test Championship, Babar Azam will be the one everyone looks towards to show redemptive form. The coming matches against England are indeed critical to prove him once more.
Read About the latest statement of Babar Azam about Captaincy
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