Babar Azam has come under the scanner after Pakistan suffered a home Test series defeat at the hands of England under his captaincy.
While Pakistan lost the Rawalpindi Test by 74 runs, they were beaten by 26 runs in the second match in Multan. As a result, the hosts conceded an unassailable 2-0 lead to England in the three-Test series.
Following the series loss, former cricketer Shahid Afridi slammed Babar Azam, claiming that the Pakistan skipper is not taking advice from senior players in strategizing and planning.
Afridi also blamed batting coach Mohammad Yousuf for not playing a proactive role in selection matters.
“As a captain, I always felt one had to be a good leader and that was possible by uniting all the players. It means that you should discuss your plans with seniors. When you start taking advice from outsiders and not involve seniors, issues come (up),” Afridi said on a TV channel.
During the post-match conference, Yousuf was enquired about the inconsistent form of wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan. To which, the batting coach replied that he had “no role in selection matters”.
“I think it was not a great answer from Yousuf and I feel Rizwan needs to be given a break and rested and Pakistan should bring in Sarfaraz Ahmed in his place for Test matches,” said Afridi.
The former all-rounder, however, urged everyone to support Babar Azam.
“If we don’t back and value him, who will value? Every player has a bad match here and there. But Babar remains the backbone of this team and he got a century (in the first Test) and 75 in the second Test,” he said.
Pakistan had a good chance of securing one of the first two spots in the World Test Championship (WTC) standings before the series but they have now slipped to No. 6 on the table and find themselves in dire trouble.
The Babar Azam-led side has a PCT of just 42.42% on the WTC points table. In order to remain in contention for a top-two spot, they will not only have to win the next Test against England but also beat New Zealand when they tour Pakistan next month and hope for other results to go in their favour.
The third and final Test will be held in Karachi from December 17.
(With PTI Inputs)
