"He wants Babar Azam to emulate Imran Khan," Shoaib Akhtar on Ramiz Raja's speech in PCB office

Akhtar also urged Raja not to sack Babar Azam as the Pakistan skipper.

Babar Azam | GettyThe former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar used to be known for his extremely quick bowling during his playing days but now he’s known for speaking his mind without any fear through his YouTube videos or media interactions.

That is what the right-arm quick did in his latest interaction on a cricket show Game On Hai, where Akhtar reacted to Ramiz Raja getting appointed as the new chairperson of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

The 59-year-old being nominated by Prime Minister Imran Khan, Pakistan's 1992 World Cup-winning captain, was unanimously elected as the chairman of the Pakistani cricket board ahead of the T20 World Cup in UAE.

Akhtar, popularly known as the ‘Rawalpindi Express’ then pointed out how Raja ‘sounded a bit confused' in his speech at the headquarters of the PCB.

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I felt he sounded a bit confused while delivering his speech and touching on a few topics. He wants Babar to emulate Imran Khan and then he also wants to keep a check on Babar for his moves and scrutinize him that won't make him a fearless skipper,” Akhtar was quoted as saying.

From what I've seen Ramiz bhai will be hard on Babar Azam and will try to toughen him up. But it's my humble request that please don't remove him from captaincy,” he added.

The cricketer-turned-commentator who had slammed PCB after the board announced Pakistan’s squad for the upcoming ICC mega event in the middle east, then urged the former Pakistan batsman to be a bit calmer.

Ramiz Bhai means good for Pakistan cricket but he needs to be calmer. Giving the media a tit-for-tat for criticism on his role is really not a good idea,” the 46-year-old from Rawalpindi concluded.

As far as the Pakistan cricket team is concerned, they will be kicking off their T20 World Cup 2021 campaign with a match against arch-rivals India on 24 October in Dubai.

 
 

By Swapnil Shireesh Javkhedkar - 15 Sep, 2021

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