Shoaib Akhtar: “Pakistan have a bad captain”
Image courtesy of: Unsplash
Iconic 161.3 kph Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar is known for expressing his opinions bluntly and did not sugarcoat it when he said Babar Azam is a “bad captain”.
Azam’s captaincy has been in the spotlight as of late, especially after the national team endured a dismal season on home soil.
Facing England first, Pakistan were whitewashed 3-0 in the Test series. After that, they played two Tests against New Zealand, both of which ended as a draw.
The men in green then took on the Black Caps in three ODIs, which they lost 2-1.
With Pakistan struggling throughout their home season, questions were raised about whether Azam is the right man to lead the team.
This led to speculation that he would be replaced in one or more formats.
However, no decision has been taken on this yet. Despite this being the case, one thing that is clear is Akhtar’s disapproval of Azam as captain.
“Pakistan have a bad captain,” he said on his YouTube channel as quoted by NDTV.
Azam is currently leading the Peshawar Zalmi in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), where he has made scores of 68, 9 and 19 in his first three games against the Karachi Kings, Multan Sultans and Quetta Gladiators respectively.
The Zalmi’s next match will be against Islamabad United on Thursday.
Peshawar Zalmi Squad for PSL 8: Babar Azam, Sherfane Rutherford, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Haris, Aamir Jamal, Salman Irshad, Tom-Kohler Cadmore, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Rovman Powell, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Danish Aziz, Arshad Iqbal, Saim Ayub, Usman Qadir, Suifyan Muqeem, Haseebullah, Jimmy Neesham, Khurram Shahzad, Haris Sohail, Richard Gleeson (partial replacement for Rovman Powell), Peter Hatzoglou (partial replacement for Mujeeb ur Rahman), Shakib Al Hasan (available for playoffs), Azmatullah Omarzai