Pakistan's Babar Azam bats during the T20 World Cup cricket match between Pakistan and South Africa in Sydney, Australia, Thursday, Nov. 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)Pakistan legend and Wasim Akram put his weight behind captain Babar Azam for his less than stellar form in the ongoing T20 World Cup, comparing his recent rough patch with that of Virat Kohli’s well documented loss of form before the T20 World Cup.
Asked what’s going on with Babar Azam after the match against South Africa where he scored just 6 runs from 15 balls, Akram told A Sports, “This happens. This happened to one of the greatest of all times Virat Kohli, almost for a year. He was out of touch, out of nick. A lot of people criticised him back in India.”
“Babar Azam is a class player, we all know. He got out while trying to play a shot against South Africa. But you need one good innings, you need a 20-22-run innings in T20. He couldn’t middle the ball, maybe he was trying too hard. Because his game is not slogging. His game is to play cricketing shots,” the former Pakistan speedster said.
Asked if Babar was under pressure, Akram said that the current Pakistan captain was under pressure to perform from himself. “He probably has put pressure on himself due to his high standards where he has scored freely in all three formats. ASs a sportsman, you do compete with yourself. But he’ll be fine,” Akram concluded.
On Thursday, Pakistan beat South Africa by 33 runs via DLS method in a rain-interrupted match to keep their semifinal hopes alive in the T20 World Cup in Sydney. Chasing a revised target of 142 from 14 overs, South Africa could only score 108 for 9.