Babar Azam: “I have indeed been dismissed by him quite a lot of times and I have worked on it as well”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Babar Azam, the Pakistan captain, has admitted that he has been dismissed by Sri Lanka left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya “quite a lot of times.”
During Pakistan’s two-Test tour of Sri Lanka in July 2023, he batted three times and in each innings, Jayasuriya was the bowler that got him out.
Acknowledging that there is a small flaw in his game, the 28-year-old Pakistan skipper has vowed to rectify the issue so that he can perform better the next time they meet.
“I have indeed been dismissed by him quite a lot of times and I have worked on it as well,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Azam finished with 76 runs in the Test series against Sri Lanka at an average of 25.33.
He then featured in the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan and made 113 runs, which included two half-centuries, at an average of 37.66.
Most recently, he led Pakistan in the Asia Cup and amassed 207 runs in five matches, which included a top score of 151, at an average of 51.75.
Pakistan kickstarted the tournament with an impressive 238-run win over Nepal before sharing one point apiece with India after their match was rained off.
Having booked their spot in the Super Fours, the men in green defeated Bangladesh by seven wickets.
However, their unbeaten streak came to an end when they faced India as the men in blue thumped them by 228 runs.
Pakistan still had a chance to progress to the Asia Cup final, but couldn’t do it as Sri Lanka beat them by two wickets via the Duckworth–Lewis–Stern method (DLS) method.
Azam will now captain Pakistan in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup in India, which begins on October 5.
The men in green’s first game will be against the Netherlands on October 6 in Hyderabad.
Pakistan Squad for 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Hasan Ali