Babar Azam has gone 18 Test innings without a fifty.
Azhar Mahmood, Pakistan's assistant coach, has claimed that Babar Azam has not been dropped, but rather rested for the remainder of the England series in preparation for future trips.
On Sunday, October 13, the Pakistan Cricket Board announced that Babar, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Naseem Shah had been pulled from the squad for the remainder of the series.
Babar Azam's Test cricket form has deteriorated since 2023, with the Pakistan captain scoring only 366 runs at a poor average of 20.33. His highest score during this spell was 41 against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
Babar Azam has gone without a fifty in 18 consecutive Test innings and his last significant score in Tests was a 161-run knock on December 26, 2022, in the first Test against New Zealand in Karachi.
Mahmood reiterated that Babar was still Pakistan's No.1 player and added that the same thing was done with Naseem and Shaheen as they wanted to go with spin and wanted to give the duo a rest.
"Babar is our No.1 player. There is no question about that. His technique and ability. If you look at Pakistan's FTP, there's a lot of cricket coming up. So, because of that, the selection committee decided that this was the best time to give Babar a rest. After that, we have to go to Australia and Zimbabwe and there is a South Africa tour as well. So that's important,” Mahmood said in a press conference.
"If you look at the fast bowling, this was the third test under new management. Before that, we were also struggling as we wanted to know how to get 20 wickets. So now we think we have more options with spin. There were also a few niggles. Naseem had a few niggles and Shaheen was playing a lot of cricket. So we decided to rest him," said Mahmood.
Mahmood further stated that Babar was rested rather than dropped and that the team management realized he needed to recuperate. Mahmood further stated that while Babar wanted to play the match, it was in his and the team's best interests to rest him.
"He hasn't been dropped. He has been rested. The management also understands that there has been a lot happening in the last few months. Mentally, even if you say you're strong, it still goes on in the back of the mind. He was willing to play. But it was the decision for him and the Pakistan team to give him a rest so that he could come fresh. Because after this, we're playing till April next year," said Mahmood.
The second Test will begin in Multan on October 15, Tuesday.
(PTI inputs)