Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali hit out at Green Shirts captain Babar Azam’s performances and leadership qualities ahead of the side’s ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 fixture against England at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens.
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It is pertinent to mention that the prolific batter has come under criticism for his cautious batting approach and captaincy. He has been lambasted for his bowling and fielding selections.
During the fixture against South Africa, hecame under fire for introducing part-time spinner Mohammad Nawaz into the attack instead of specialist spinner Usama Mir – who had two overs left – when the Green Shirts had to defend five runs and take one wicket to win the match.
However, the side ended up on the losing end as tailender Keshav Maharaj struck a boundary.
Many legendary cricketers have called for the replacement of Babar Azam as captain. Now, Basit Ali is the latest addition to the list of the batter’s critics.
Basit Ali – in the ARY News show ‘Har Lamhaa Purjosh‘ – believes Babar Azam is not a match-winner as he settles himself, carry the innings and gets out while trying to play extravagant shots.
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He said former opening batter Saeed Anwar was a real match-winner as he had the knack to take the game away from the opposition in just 15 to 20 overs.
Basit Ali said the Pakistan team is not producing match-winners because of its recent string of performances. He said the side is full of players that scored 80-90 runs in 100 balls.
Related – ICC Cricket World Cup 2023: ‘Babar Azam is not a match-winner like Virat Kohli,’ says Shahid Afridi
Former Pakistan captain Azhar Ali believes that every player, whether it be India legend Sachin Tendulkar or Babar Azam, has tendency to win games for the side.
Citing the example of Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, the former batter said “The Big Show” may not have scored a double-century if captain Pat Cummins had not supported him on the other end.
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He said the situation would not have been the same with opening batter Fakhar Zaman if the Pakistan captain had not supported him.
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Babar Azam, Pakistan’s skipper, lost his world No.1 ODI batter title as India’s opening batsman Shubman Gill claimed the top spot in the latest MRF Tyres ICC Men’s Batting Rankings.
Babar Azam has totaled 282 runs from eight knocks at the World Cup and drops six rating points below Shubman Gill into second place, He stayed on the No.1 batting ranking for more than two years before it came to an end today.
