Babar Azam: “Almost all of them are the same guys, but for the new guys, it’s a golden opportunity, and Shan Masood also has a great chance”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Babar Azam said the ongoing three-match Test series against Australia is a “great chance” for new Test captain Shan Masood to dominate.
Masood, a top order batsman, replaced Azam as Test skipper after the latter resigned from the leadership role in all three formats following Pakistan’s disappointing performance in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup.
In the first Test in Perth, Masood made scores of 30 and 2 as the men in green succumbed to a 360-run loss.
While Azam failed to have much of an impact either, scoring 21 and 14, he called on Masood and the new faces in the Test squad to seize their “golden opportunity” and show what they can do in the remaining two Tests.
“Almost all of them are the same guys, but for the new guys, it’s a golden opportunity, and Shan Masood also has a great chance,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan. “Wherever you go, you try to dominate; it’s not about going there and not being able to dominate, we can do it, we have the ability, and we take it forward in our own way. Whatever work we do, as a team, we are united.
“We will take experience from Mohammad Hafeez, Umar Gul, and Saeed Ajmal. Things don’t just come all at once; they come from sharing and from experience. The more we share with each other, the more [helpful] it will be.”
The second Test between Pakistan and Australia will begin on December 26 in Melbourne.
Pakistan Squad for Australia Test Series: Shan Masood (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi
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