Mohammad Hafeez: “Thank you very much to him that he accepted this and he played for Pakistan at number 3 which obviously I think is the best way to move”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan team director and interim head coach Mohammad Hafeez believes limited overs captain Babar Azam should continue batting at number three in T20Is as it’s the best spot for him.
Azam used to open the batting with Mohammad Rizwan and scored plenty of runs at the top of the order, while also leading the men in green to numerous victories.
However, during the five-match T20I series against New Zealand in January 2024, the 29-year-old was moved down to number three and Rizwan opened with power-hitting sensation Saim Ayub.
Even though Ayub has yet to produce a big knock in international cricket, Hafeez reiterated his desire to continue seeing Azam coming in at one down.
“Thank you very much to him that he accepted this and he played for Pakistan at number 3 which obviously I think is the best way to move,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Azam recently led Pakistan in their five-match T20I series against New Zealand and amassed 125 runs in five games, which included a top score of 69, at an average of 31.25 and a strike-rate of 138.88.
He is now involved in the three-match T20I series against Ireland and scored 57 and 0 in the first two games. The series is currently tied at 1-1 going into the third match on May 14.
Following the Ireland series, Pakistan will play four T20Is against England from May 22 to May 30.
Pakistan Squad for Ireland and England T20I Series: Babar Azam (capt), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan
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