Tag: Babar Azam

Pakistan star batter Babar Azam was recently seen having a hard time facing the Test pacer Khurram Shahzad during a practice session ahead of the Bangladesh series.

Babar has been facing criticism recently due to his lacklustre batting displays in all forms of cricket. Over his last six Test matches, he has only been able to accumulate 253 runs in 11 innings, with a highest score of just 41.

He is determined to rediscover his form during the upcoming Bangladesh Tests, which are set to commence on 21 April. However, Khurram Shahzad gave him a tough time in the nets.

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During a recent training session in Pakistan, a video captured the moment when Babar Azam was hit in the groin by Khurram Shahzad’s delivery.

The star batter appeared to be in some discomfort as Khurram reached out to him, asking if he was fine. After taking a moment to recover and performing some stretches, Babar returned to his practice.

However, Khurram subsequently bowled an unplayable delivery that Babar failed to make contact with, resulting in the ball striking his stumps.

The Test series will commence in Rawalpindi, with the first Test scheduled to begin on 21 August. Following that, the action will shift to the National Bank Stadium in Karachi, where the second Test match will be held from 30 August to 3 September.

Pakistan squad for Test series against Bangladesh

Shan Masood (c), Saud Shakeel (vc), Aamir Jamal (subject to Fitness), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wicket-keeper) and Shaheen Shah Afridi

READ: Ex-Pakistan batter blasts ICC, labels them as Babar Azam’s enemy

Former Pakistan batter Basit Ali has criticized the International Cricket Council (ICC) and questioned the legitimacy of ODI Rankings, where star batter Babar Azam is the top-ranked batter.

Babar is leading the batting charts with 824 points, followed by the Indian trio of Rohit Sharma (765), Shubman Gill (763) and Virat Kohli (746).

However, Basit expressed stern concern over the rankings as he thinks the performing ODI batters like Travis Head and Rachin Ravindra are not among the top ten batters.

He posted a video on his YouTube channel sharing his suspicions about the ICC’s intentions to keep Babar on top to hinder his progress.

Furthermore, he raised concerns about the placement of Shubman Gill as the number three ODI batsman.

“When I saw the ICC ranking (ODI batters), Babar Azam was at the top, number two was Rohit Sharma, number three was Shubman Gill, and then there was Virat Kohli at number four,” Basit said.

“I did not find it necessary to read the remaining names because I couldn’t see Travis Head and Rachin Ravindra. I think the ICC wants that Babar doesn’t perform. He would be happy with being the number one-ranked batter in ODIs,” he added.

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“Who gives these rankings? On what basis are Babar Azam and Shubman Gill there?” the former batter questioned.

Basit Ali highlighted the fact that Babar last played an ODI almost a year ago and his performances were not up to the mark in the ODI World Cup 2023.

“Babar’s last ODI was at the last year’s World Cup. We saw the likes of Rachin Ravindra, Quinton de Kock, Travis Head, and Virat Kohli at the World Cup,” he stated.

The former batter also mentioned that Babar’s last century was against Nepal in the Asia Cup before the World Cup, while Fakhar Zaman and Mohammad Rizwan scored a hundred each for Pakistan in the mega-event.

“For Pakistan, Mohammad Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman scored a century each. Babar Azam did not score a single hundred. His last hundred came against Nepal in the Asia Cup. What kind of ranking do they give?” he argued.

Basit Ali ended his video with a surprising statement, alleging that the individuals at ICC are working against Babar Azam.

“The people at ICC are Babar Azam’s enemies. If you asked Babar who is the current number one, he would also pick Travis Head or Virat Kohli,” he concluded.

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Pakistan is gearing up for the two-match Test series against Bangladesh and sources have disclosed the batting position for the star batter, Babar Azam, on Thursday.

Babar is set to play at number four, the position where he played during Pakistan’s last Test series against Australia in December-January.

The sources further revealed that Abdullah Shafique will continue as the opener, however, Saim Ayub, who made his debut in Pakistan’s last Test, might not make it into the playing XI.

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The uncapped batting prodigy Mohammad Huraira is a strong candidate to replace Saim, owing to his recent form with Pakistan Shaheens. Meanwhile, captain Shan Masood will continue at his number three position.

The source also shared that Mir Hamza will play as the third seamer beside experienced Shaheen Shah Afridi and returning pace sensation Naseem Shah.

The Test series will commence in Rawalpindi, with the first Test scheduled to begin on 21 August. Following that, the action will shift to the National Bank Stadium in Karachi, where the second Test match will be held from 30 August to 3 September.

Pakistan squad for Test series against Bangladesh

Shan Masood (c), Saud Shakeel (vc), Aamir Jamal (subject to Fitness), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wicket-keeper) and Shaheen Shah Afridi

READ: Mushtaq Ahmed backs Bangladesh spinners ahead of Pakistan Tests

DUBAI: India ODI captain Rohit Sharma has moved further closer to the top-ranked Pakistan batter Babar Azam in the latest International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s ODI Batting Rankings on Wednesday.

Rohit Sharma jumped to the second position after a strong showing in the recently concluded ODI series against Sri Lanka, where he finished as the highest run-scorer with 157 runs in three matches.

The Indian captain surpassed his teammate Shubman Gill, who moved down to third place, with a difference of two points.

Meanwhile, Babar Azam is holding onto the top spot with a massive lead of 59 points.

Sri Lanka batters made significant gains in the latest ICC ODI Rankings after they defeated India in a bilateral series for the first time since 1997.

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Pathum Nissanka moved to eighth after gaining one place, owing to his decent performance against India. He scored 101 runs in the three-match series.

On the other hand, Kusal Mendis moved five places to claim the joint 39th spot, while Avishka Fernando, who was the second-highest run-scorer in the series, gained 20 places to 68th.

Sri Lankan spinner Dunith Wellalage jumped 17 places to reach the 59th position in the ICC ODI Bowling Rankings after finishing the series with seven wickets. Meanwhile, Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi rose two rungs to 7th position.

India pacer Mohammed Siraj dropped 4 places to 9th after a forgettable series against India, managing a mere three wickets in three matches.

READ: Pakistan, Bangladesh to play Karachi Test without spectators

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali drew a comparison between star athlete Arshad Nadeem and national men’s white-ball team captain Babar Azam, terming the former’s success at the Paris Olympics as the standout achievement.

Babar is one of the most celebrated sports figures in Pakistan while Nadeem rose to fame with his ground-breaking performance in the Javelin Throw final of the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024.

The star athlete turned heads with a massive 92.97m throw in his second attempt to set the all-time Olympic record. His astounding effort eventually paved his way to the Olympic gold.

Arshad Nadeem with his 92.97m throw ended Pakistan’s 32-year Olympic medal drought and became the first individual from the country to win the Gold.

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Meanwhile, Basit Ali, known for his blunt remarks, came up with a major assertion and stated that Arshad Nadeem’s gold-medal victory at the Paris Olympics put him ahead of Babar Azam and the national cricket team.

“Cricket is a different game. But the work that Arshad Nadeem has done for this country will take a lot of years for Babar Azam. Because Babar plays a team game. He does not play an individual game. Arshad plays individually. He got a gold medal alone,” Basit said.

Basit Ali then went on to state that if the Pakistan cricket team manages to win a gold medal in the Los Angeles Olympics 2028 then it would be fair to draw a comparison with Arshad Nadeem.

“If the Pakistan cricket team goes to the Olympics in 2028 and wins a gold medal there, then we can draw comparisons. But at this time, there is no comparison of Babar to Arshad Nadeem. Arshad is a hero at this time,” he added.

READ: Bangladesh team to reach Pakistan “early” for Test series

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali sparked a debate with his remarks about Babar Azam’s performance with the bat, suggesting the latter to step down as white-ball captain to excel as a player.

Babar has been far from his bat in international cricket as the right-handed batter last scored a century in 2023 which came against Nepal during the Asia Cup.

Basit Ali termed the upcoming two-match home series against Bangladesh a pivotal opportunity for Babar Azam to prove his mettle.

He, however, suggested Babar relinquish the national men’s team’s captaincy to focus more on his batting.

“Babar Azam has made the last century against Nepal in the Asia Cup. It is a great chance for him to prove himself. To come back in the Test Rankings,” said Basit.

“And he is not the captain. It is a very good thing. And he should quit the white-ball captaincy as well. He should focus on his batting. He is a premium batsman of Pakistan. So, he should perform well,” he added.

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Basit Ali then went on to advise the current national Test team captain Shan Masood, urging him to make bold decisions and prioritize team over individual preferences.

“In the last 2-3 years, we have played a lot of talkative cricket. We will win the World Cup. We will win the Asia Cup. We will play in the finals in India. It was all talkative cricket. Now, it is time to deliver. Shan Masood becomes the Test captain again after the Australia series, so he will now have to make his own decisions,” he said.

“He should not think like that if he is a premium batter or a premium bowler, then I will give him a soft corner. No. He must take decisions that are good for Pakistan. Not out of fear. Out of bravery. Then the cricket will look good, and they will perform better.”

READ: Arshad Nadeem to be conferred with Civil Award for Paris Olympics glory

Pakistan white-ball captain Babar Azam extended his heartfelt best wishes to star Javelin Thrower Arshad Nadeem ahead of the Paris Olympics 2024 final, scheduled for Thursday.

Nadeem, who is the sole hope of Pakistan for a medal in the ongoing games, qualified in the final round of the Javelin throw earlier today with an 86.59-meter throw in his first attempt.

He eased past into the final round, finishing fourth, while India’s Neeraj Chopra topped the charts with a massive 89.34-meter throw.

“I want to make Pakistan proud in the Olympic Games,” Nadeem told a local news channel.

“I am optimistic about delivering a good result in the final,” he maintained while thanking fans for their support.”

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Meanwhile, Babar Azam sent his best wishes to Arshad Nadeem through a video message and requested the nation to pray for the star athlete’s victory.

“I wish him good luck. I request everyone to support and pray he wins the final. Chak De Phatte Arshad Nadeem,” he said.

The final of the Javelin Throw event will be played on Thursday, August 8, at 11:25 pm Pakistan Standard Time (PST) and will be telecasted live on Pakistan’s first HD Sports Channel A Sports and will also be streamed live on ARY ZAP.

It is worth mentioning here that Arshad Nadeem is Pakistan’s last hope for a medal in the ongoing Paris Olympics as all of their remaining athletes have been knocked out of the medal race.

Pakistan last won a medal in the Olympics during the 1992 Summer Games in Barcelona, however, Arshad is hopeful that he will once again bring the glory to the country.

READ: Dunith Wellalage leads Sri Lanka to defeat India in ODI series after 27 years

DUBAI: India’s ODI captain Rohit Sharma has closed the gap with top-ranked Pakistan star batter Babar Azam in the latest International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s ODI Batting Rankings.

Rohit Sharma has been rewarded for his impressive form in the ongoing ODI series against Sri Lanka, where he is the leading run-scorer after two matches.

The right-handed batter has scored half-centuries in both games and accumulated 122 runs at a brilliant strike rate of 134.06.

Consequently, he jumped one place to grab the third spot in the ICC ODI batting rankings with 763 rating points, only 61 points shy of Babar Azam.

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Meanwhile, Sharma’s team-mate Shubman Gill is holding on to his second position as he managed 51 runs in the first two matches against Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka’s opening batter Avishka Fernando has moved up nine places to 88th and Janith Liyanage climbed 10 spots to 76th in the ICC ODI batting rankings.

On the other hand, India’s spin bowlers made significant gains in the ICC ODI bowling rankings as Kuldeep Yadav jumped five places to reach fourth spot, while Washington Sundar gained 45 places to reach equal 97th.

India’s pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who is not participating in the ongoing series, dropped three places to eighth while Pakistan’s Shaheen Afridi lost one spot to reach ninth.

READ: PCB reveals revised schedule of Bangladesh A tour of Pakistan

Former Pakistan head coach Saqlain Mushtaq shared his two cents on the ongoing debate regarding the white-ball captaincy of the national men’s team.

During an interview with a local cricket website, Mushtaq urged the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to do long-term planning while making decisions regarding the captaincy of the national cricket team.

Saqlain Mushtaq further added that the concerned authorities within the cricket board should be making decisions regarding the captaincy after analyzing players, who they think are capable enough to lead the team while responding to the calls for the ouster of current whit-ball captain Babar Azam.

“Many people are saying that he [Babar Azam] should quit captaincy and play as a regular player. But all these voices are coming from outside, from people who are watching and listening to things from the outside. These are comments from outsiders,” Mushtaq said.

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“We shouldn’t listen to the voices of those outside. The people inside, who are observing the situation from within, should see what’s really going on and decide who is capable of leading the team effectively.

“If you have to appoint a captain, do you look at the short term, long term, or mid-term? What are you considering when appointing a captain? We don’t seem to have a vision, we look at what’s going to happen tomorrow and appoint a captain, then change the team the next day. Because the people making these decisions don’t even know if they’ll be around tomorrow, there’s no plan for the long term,” he added.

Saqlain Mushtaq further backed his stance by citing the example of left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi, who was removed as T20I captain after leading the national team in just one bilateral series.

“For example, Shaheen was appointed for the short term and he’s already out. Now Babar has come in for the short term, there’s been just one World Cup, and now he’ll be changed. Someone else will come, and then there’s the Champions Trophy, and after that, the T20 World Cup,” he added.

READ: Ravi Shastri picks India-Pakistan clash as his favourite World Cup moment

DUBAI: Pakistan white-ball captain and star batter Babar Azam rose one place, while England’s top-order batter Joe Root clinched the top spot in the latest ICC Test Batting Rankings on Wednesday.

The latest ranking updates saw Root reclaiming the number one spot after a year as he overtook New Zealand batter Kane Williamson on the back of his impressive performance in the home series against West Indies.

The right-handed Englishman finished the series as the highest run-scorer with 291 runs across four innings in the three-match series. He played a crucial 87-run knock in the first innings of the third Test.

With 872 points, Root is now 13 points clear of Williamson, who moved down to second position. Meanwhile, England batter Harry Brook dropped four places to seventh after scoring 197 runs in four innings against West Indies.

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As a result of Brook’s slip, Babar Azam and New Zealand’s Daryl Mitchell are now tied for third, while Australia’s Steve Smith and India’s Rohit Sharma also gained one place to reach fifth and sixth respectively.

Meanwhile, England Test captain Ben Stokes jumped four places to reach 30th after hitting a quick half-century as an opener in the second innings of the third Test to guide his team to a ten-wicket victory.

He also moved one place up in the Test All-Rounder Rankings to reach sixth, while Chris Woakes gained three places to ninth spot.

On the other hand, in the ICC T20I Batting Rankings, Yashasvi Jaiswal moved up to fourth, while Shubman Gill reached a career-best 21st. Meanwhile, Pakistan batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan dropped one spot to fifth and sixth, respectively.

Sri Lanka all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga, who had a forgettable series against India, lost his position as the number one all-rounder in T20 rankings. Hasaranga is now joint-third, while Australia’s Marcus Stoinis has reclaimed the No.1 spot.

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