Atiq-uz-Zaman: “Babar Azam should take a break from cricket, go on holiday with his family and see a sports psychologist”
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Former Pakistan cricketer Atiq-uz-Zaman believes Babar Azam “should take a break from cricket” as he is struggling to have an impact at the moment.
He suggested that the 30-year-old go on a holiday and “see a sports psychologist” as well.
Azam’s form has dominated the headlines for the past few months as he has been unable to score runs consistently, which is what propelled him to stardom early on in his career.
Considering that his last century in international cricket came in August 2023, Atiq urged the Lahore native to take some time off to get some much-needed rest and relaxation.
“Babar Azam should take a break from cricket, go on holiday with his family and see a sports psychologist,” he was quoted as saying by respected journalist Saj Sadiq on X, formerly known as Twitter.
In Pakistan’s two-Test series against Bangladesh, Azam was restricted to 64 runs at an average of 16.
He then played for the Stallions in the Champions One-Day Cup, which was a domestic 50-over competition that took place in Faisalabad.
In four games, he amassed 230 runs, which included a century and a fifty, at an average of 76.66.
Azam then took part in the three-Test series against England, but only featured in the first Test in Multan, where he made scores of 30 and 5.
He was subsequently removed from the squad for the second and third Tests, but Pakistan ended up winning 2-1, which was their first Test series victory at home since 2021.
Azam is now playing in Pakistan’s white-ball series against Australia, which consists of three ODIs and three T20Is.
In the three-match ODI series, he scored 80 runs at an average of 80.
After taking on Australia, Pakistan’s next assignment will be a tour of Zimbabwe, where they will play three ODIs and three T20Is from November 24 to December 5.
Pakistan Squad for Australia ODI Series: Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan (wicketkeeper), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan (captain and wicketkeeper), Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi
Pakistan Squad for Australia T20I Series: Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan, Jahandad Khan, Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan (captain and wicketkeeper), Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Omair Bin Yousuf, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Usman Khan
Pakistan Squad for Zimbabwe ODI Series: Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan (wicketkeeper), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan (captain and wicketkeeper), Irfan Khan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shahnawaz Dahani, Tayyab Tahir
Pakistan Squad for Zimbabwe T20I Series: Ahmed Daniyal, Arafat Minhas, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan (wicketkeeper), Jahandad Khan, Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Irfan Khan, Omair bin Yousuf, Qasim Akram, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha, Sufiyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir, Usman Khan
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