Salman Butt: “Babar and Rizwan have done great service for Pakistan. It is also important to highlight where they are lacking and it is also important for them to upgrade themselves, and this is for every player in the world”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt said batsmen Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan need to “upgrade themselves” in areas where they are lacking at the moment.
Salman noted there is no denying what the duo have done for Pakistan cricket over the years, but pointed out all cricketers need to improve their game to adhere to the changing nature of the sport.
Recently, Azam and Rizwan featured in Pakistan’s three-match ODI series against New Zealand, with the former scoring 129 runs, which included two fifties, at an average of 43.
As for Rizwan, who is Pakistan’s ODI captain, he finished with 72 runs at an average of 24.
“Babar and Rizwan have done great service for Pakistan. It is also important to highlight where they are lacking and it is also important for them to upgrade themselves, and this is for every player in the world,” Salman was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Following the New Zealand series, Azam captained the Peshawar Zalmi in the 2025 Pakistan Super League (PSL) and amassed 288 runs in 10 matches, which included three half-centuries, at an average of 36 and a strike-rate of 128.57.
Rizwan, meanwhile, led the Multan Sultans and accumulated 367 runs in 10 games, which included a century and a fifty, at an average of 52.42 and a strike-rate of 139.54.
Neither of them were picked for Pakistan’s three-match T20I series against Bangladesh, which the men in green won 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
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