Waqar Younis: “When you have got such a big name and also are an equally great player, then you do have that added extra pressure of batting”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Waqar Younis, the legendary fast bowler, believes Pakistan captain Babar Azam is a “great player” with “such a big name.”
Azam is known for being Pakistan’s frontline batsman and is constantly under the pump the perform as that’s what is expected of him.
Waqar feels as if some of the pressure that was initially on the 29-year-old’s shoulders has gone due to his consistent ability to score runs in all three formats. As a result, it has allowed him to focus more on improving his leadership skills.
“When you have got such a big name and also are an equally great player, then you do have that added extra pressure of batting,” he told Cricket Pakistan. “Batting pressure means that if I wouldn’t score runs, the team might end up losing, or maybe the team wouldn’t perform that well. So I think Babar must have gotten rid of that monkey on his shoulder and felt a little less burdened.”
Azam has done well with the bat over the last couple of months as he scored 76 runs in two Tests against Sri Lanka at an average of 25.33.
He followed that up with 113 runs in three ODIs against Afghanistan, which included two fifties, at an average of 37.66.
Most recently, he captained Pakistan in the Asia Cup and finished with 207 runs in five matches, which included a top score of 151, at an average of 51.75.
Pakistan began the tournament on a high note as they thrashed Nepal by 238 runs before sharing one point apiece with India as their match was abandoned due to rain.
Despite this, the men in green progressed to the Super Four stage and went on to beat Bangladesh by seven wickets.
Their momentum subsequently stalled when they suffered a disappointing 228-run loss to India.
Still in with a chance to make it to the Asia Cup final, Pakistan fell short in their bid to so as they lost to Sri Lanka by two wickets via the Duckworth–Lewis–Stern method (DLS) method.
Currently, Azam is involved in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup and has made scores of 5, 10 and 50 in the first three games against the Netherlands, Sri Lanka and India.
Having won two matches and lost one, which occurred against India, Pakistan will be looking for a big win against Australia on October 20 in Bengaluru.
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
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