Pakistan batter Babar Azam has come under the scanner for his poor display in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
The right-hander looked far from his best as he played a turtle-paced knock of 64 (90 balls) against New Zealand in a 321-run chase, and followed it with 23 off 26 balls during Pakistan’s six-wicket loss to India.
As a result, Babar is drawing flak from all quarters, with many former cricketers calling for his snub from the national team.
Amid a wave of criticism, former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has come to the defence of Babar Azam, asking fans to back the star batter during his difficult phase.
“His Test average with 9 centuries and 26 fifties is 44.5. One-day average is 56.72 with 19 centuries and 32 half-centuries. In T20Is he has an average of 41, strike-rate of 129. Someone tell me if these stats have been beaten by any single player in Pakistan in the last 20 years,” Butt said while speaking on GNN HD News.
“The players who are trying to say they are match-winners, combine them and look at how many matches they have won. I think a comparison is warranted,” he added.
“Talk sense. You don’t have a Kohli or a Williamson. Babar is no Kohli. But Babar is the best that we have. If he’s not scoring runs, he needs back-up now. When he’s scoring, even if you don’t like him you will have to sing his praises with the world,” Butt continued.
India’s star batter Virat Kohli, who was struggling for runs leading up to the Champions Trophy, slammed a match-winning century against Pakistan in Dubai on February 23.
Salman Butt sees this as a reason to persist with Babar Azam, pointing out that supporting cast also matters.
“This dip in form, even Kohli had it, but Kohli is such a high-class player that he kept scoring 50s in those matches,” argued Butt. “Who did he have with him? Rohit Sharma, MS Dhoni. Big players, match-winners. Who does Babar have?”
Pakistan’s final group-stage match of the Champions Trophy against Bangladesh was abandoned due to rain in Rawalpindi on February 27. They finished their campaign without a single win in the home tournament.
