Shoaib Mohammad: “I see a tinge of frustration in Babar’s batting these days, especially when the boundaries are not coming for him”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan batsman Shoaib Mohammad said he sees a “tinge of frustration” when Babar Azam is batting nowadays.
He noted that this is especially prevalent “when the boundaries are not coming for him”.
To solve this issue, Shoaib suggested that Azam “spend time at the crease” and build his innings by taking singles and doubles.
“I see a tinge of frustration in Babar’s batting these days, especially when the boundaries are not coming for him. But if he is not able to stand and deliver today like he used to, he should settle for singles and doubles and spend time at the crease to build his innings,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Azam recently featured in Pakistan’s three-match ODI series against New Zealand and amassed 129 runs, which included two fifties, at an average of 43.
He looked solid while captaining the Peshawar Zalmi in the 2025 Pakistan Super League (PSL) as well, scoring 288 runs in 10 games, which included three fifties, at an average of 36 and a strike-rate of 128.57.
After PSL 10, Pakistan faced Bangladesh in a three-match T20I series, but Azam was overlooked by the selectors.
The men in green won the series 3-0.
Pakistan Squad for Bangladesh T20I Series: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Abbas Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hassan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (wicketkeeper), Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan (wicketkeeper) and Saim Ayub