‘Kahaan se famous person hai?’: Ex-Pakistan cricketer says Babar Azam could also be dropped for subsequent sport | Cricket Information – The Instances of India – Imperial Wire

Pakistan’s Babar Azam (AP Photograph/Eranga Jayawardena)

The talk round Babar Azam’s place in Pakistan’s T20I setup exhibits no indicators of easing. The previous captain got here underneath sharp criticism after a disappointing outing in opposition to the Netherlands in Pakistan’s T20 World Cup Group A opener in Colombo on Saturday. Babar’s keep on the crease was temporary and ineffective. Strolling in after the dismissal of Salman Ali Agha, he struggled to rotate strike and managed solely 15 runs from 18 deliveries, slowing Pakistan’s momentum at an important stage. His poor shot choice proved expensive, permitting the Netherlands to claw their method again into the competition. Pakistan finally escaped with a win thanks largely to Faheem Ashraf’s late counterattack of 29 off 11 balls. With out it, the match may have slipped away.

Former Pakistan batter Basit Ali was scathing in his evaluation, suggesting Babar may even be dropped for the subsequent sport in opposition to the USA. Talking on the ‘Sport Plan’ present, Ali claimed head coach Mike Hesson was visibly sad with Babar’s dismissal. “I’ve a sense that Babar is not going to play in Pakistan’s subsequent sport. The anger I noticed on coach Mike Hesson’s face… I don’t assume that he’ll play Babar at no 4 once more within the subsequent sport,” mentioned Ali. Babar’s dismissal got here as he tried to tackle the bowling by charging down the observe. The ball was flighted invitingly, however he mistimed his lofted drive and was caught comfortably at long-off. Ali went on to query Babar’s suitability for the T20 format, arguing that his status doesn’t translate into affect cricket. He pointed to the 31-year-old’s struggles within the Huge Bash League with the Sydney Sixers forward of the World Cup as additional proof. Throughout a match in opposition to Sydney Thunder, Babar was denied a single off the ultimate ball of an over by Steve Smith, who was seeking to maximise the Energy Surge. The incident sparked controversy, with Babar reacting angrily after his dismissal by hitting the boundary rope together with his bat. “When you name Babar Azam a famous person in ODIs or Checks, I’d nonetheless agree. However in T20Is? Kahaan se famous person hai? (How is he a famous person?) A batter who drops down from his common batting place and comes out to bat at no 4, and can’t even inform the administration that he’s not a no 4 batter! Doesn’t Babar know this?” mentioned Basit. “Even a membership cricketer will inform you that in T20S, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, they’re all higher gamers within the format than Babar! Sahibzada Farhan and Saim Ayub are additionally higher T20 gamers than Babar. Even Salman Ali Agha has proven that he’s a greater participant at No. 3 than Babar. After what Steve Smith did with Babar Azam within the Huge Bash League, folks nonetheless have not turn out to be sensible! He denied a single simply to forestall Babar from getting on strike. His sport isn’t suited to T20s,” he added. Notably, even earlier than the match started, Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha had made it clear that status wouldn’t assure choice, stating that the staff administration wouldn’t hesitate to drop Babar Azam if he didn’t match into the specified staff mixture.