Basit Ali: “I think Babar just needs to bat at number three, and they should make Saim (Ayub) or Fakhar (Zaman) open with Mohammad Rizwan”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan batsman Basit Ali believes either Saim Ayub or Fakhar Zaman should open the batting with Mohammad Rizwan in T20Is.
Ayub has struggled to have an impact at the top of the order, while Zaman has been batting at number four as of late despite being a specialist opener.
Regardless of what decision the men in green make, Basit noted one thing that cannot change is limited overs captain Babar Azam coming in at number three.
“I think Babar just needs to bat at number three, and they should make Saim (Ayub) or Fakhar (Zaman) open with Mohammad Rizwan,” he was quoted as saying by NDTV.
In the 2024 T20 World Cup, Ayub only managed to muster 23 runs in two games at an average of 11.50 and a strike-rate of 79.31.
As for Zaman, he finished with 33 runs in four matches at an average of 8.25 and a strike-rate of 110.
Pakistan lost their first two games against the United States of America and India before fighting back to take down Canada and Ireland.
Despite claiming two victories, the men in green were eliminated in the group stage.
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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