Matthew Hayden: “Babar’s been under some adversity but it’ll make him an even greater player”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan batting consultant and mentor Matthew Hayden is confident that captain Babar Azam will become an even greater batsman as he goes through adversity.
The 28-year-old is currently under increasing pressure as the national team have endured a string of poor results under his leadership.
They were whitewashed 3-0 in their Test series against England, while both their Test matches against New Zealand ended as a draw.
Most recently, the men in green played a three-match ODI series against the Black Caps, which they lost 2-1.
This has led to speculation that Azam will no longer captain Pakistan in all three formats as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is reportedly keen on the idea of splitting the captaincy.
Despite what he is going through right now, Hayden has backed the elite batsman to overcome it and become even stronger.
“Babar’s been under some adversity but it’ll make him an even greater player,” the former hard-hitting Australia opener was quoted as saying by respected journalist Saj Sadiq on Twitter.
Azam’s focus will now shift to the Pakistan Super League (PSL), where he will captain the Peshawar Zalmi. He was traded to the franchise from the Karachi Kings in return for power-hitter Haider Ali and veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik.
PSL 8 will be held from February 13 to March 19 in Karachi, Lahore, Multan and Rawalpindi.
Peshawar Zalmi Squad for PSL 8:Â Babar Azam, Rovman Powell, Bhanuka Rajapaksa (Sri Lanka), Mujeeb Ur Rehman, Sherfane Rutherford, Wahab Riaz, Arshad Iqbal, Danish Aziz, Mohammad Haris, Aamer Jamal, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Saim Ayub, Salman Irshad, Usman Qadir, Haseebullah Khan, Sufyan Muqeem and James Neesham