'If Sarfaraz Ahmed can be removed, why not Babar Azam?'

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali caught attention with his statements involving captain Babar Azam and wicketkeeper Sarfaraz Ahmed amid the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 in India.

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Babar Azam’s leadership skills have been questioned ever since Pakistan’s elimination from the Asia Cup 2023. He was criticized for choosing wrong bowling options and poor field settings.

Moreover, social media criticism of Babar Azam includes preferring friends over talented cricketers and not creating or allowing replacements of his favourite co-players.

Apart from his leadership skills, his individual performances have come under criticism as well. He has been often called a “selfish” and a “timid” player by cricketing legends.

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Basit Ali shared his views on the Pakistan Cricket Board’s approach towards Babar Azam’s captaincy. The former cricketer, in the ARY News show ‘Har Lamhaa Purjosh’, questioned why the prolific batter cannot be removed as the frontman when Sarfaraz Ahmed can.

The former cricketer said there is no use in discussing the captaincy when the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 is underway. He went on to say that his best wishes are with the Pakistan captain.

It is pertinent to mention that wicketkeeper Sarfaraz Ahmed was relieved of his leadership position after a dismal outing against Sri Lanka in the home T20I series in 2019.

Former cricketer Kamran Akmal, adding to Basit Ali’s remarks, said that he doesn’t see anyone replacing Babar Azam as captain for the next five years.

Kamran Akmal added that Babar Azam could have been a good captain, but there are questions on the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 squad. He said the batter is being criticized because he stuck with a group of players.