Rashid Latif: “Babar Azam was not a born captain but we hope he learns captaincy [over] time”

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Former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Rashid Latif believes Babar Azam “was not a born captain”.

Azam is currently in his second stint as captain as he previously led the men in green in all three formats before stepping down in November 2023.

However, just four months later, he was back in charge as he was reappointed as the country’s limited overs skipper.

While Latif is not fully convinced about Azam’s captaincy skills, he hopes the 29-year-old will keep getting better over time.

“Babar Azam was not a born captain but we hope he learns captaincy [over] time,” he was quoted as saying by journalist Arfa Feroz Zake on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Azam recently led Pakistan in their five-match T20I series against New Zealand and made 125 runs, which included a top score of 69, at an average of 31.25 and a strike-rate of 138.88.

He then scored 132 runs, which included two fifties, at an average of 44 and a strike-rate of 148.31 in the three-match T20I series against Ireland.

As for the four-match T20I series against England, he finished with 68 runs in two games at an average of 34 and a strike-rate of 141.66.

Pakistan will now be in action in the 2024 T20 World Cup, which is being played in the West Indies and United States of America.

Pakistan’s first T20 World Cup game will be against the United States of America in Dallas on June 6.

Pakistan Squad for 2024 T20 World Cup: Babar Azam (capt), Saim Ayub, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Azam Khan (wk), Usman Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Amir, Abbas Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed

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