Matthew Hayden: “Babar is central not only because he is the captain, but he is absolutely central in terms of the talent of that batting unit”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Matthew Hayden, the Australia big-hitting powerhouse, said there is no denying that Pakistan captain Babar Azam is the heart of his team’s batting unit.
Having scored runs in all three formats over the past few years, Hayden also pointed out that he is the biggest talent when lining up all the batsmen Pakistan currently have.
The 29-year-old from Lahore has not been at his best in the last couple of months, but has slowly been finding his feet once again.
“Babar is central not only because he is the captain, but he is absolutely central in terms of the talent of that batting unit,” Hayden told Star Sports as quoted by Cricket Pakistan.
In the ongoing 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup, Azam has amassed 282 runs in eight matches, which includes four fifties, at an average of 40.28.
Pakistan won their first two matches against the Netherlands and Sri Lanka before falling to India, Australia, Afghanistan and South Africa.
The men in green stopped that dismal run with back-to-back wins over Bangladesh and New Zealand, which kept them in the hunt for a spot in the World Cup semi-finals.
Pakistan will now take on England on November 11 in Kolkata.
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