Sir Viv Richards: “Babar Azam, one of the best Pakistani batsmen. People would look and say, he is too slow, but you do need that sort of foundation in your team”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Legendary West Indies big-hitter Sir Viv Richards has described Babar Azam as one of Pakistan’s best batsmen.
Azam is currently in the midst of a rough patch and has seemingly lost his place in the T20I team.
When he represented Pakistan in the shortest format, he regularly opened the batting and was criticised for his low strike-rate.
However, Richards came to the 30-year-old’s defence, stating that it’s ok if he bats slow as “you do need that sort of foundation in your team”.
“Babar Azam, one of the best Pakistani batsmen. People would look and say, he is too slow, but you do need that sort of foundation in your team,” he was quoted as saying by Khel Shel on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Azam recently captained the Peshawar Zalmi in the 2025 Pakistan Super League (PSL) and amassed 288 runs in 10 games, which included three fifties, at an average of 36 and a strike-rate of 128.57.
He was then left out of Pakistan’s squad for their three-match T20I series against Bangladesh in Lahore, which the men in green won 3-0.
Azam also failed to make the cut for the tour of Bangladesh, where Pakistan lost the T20I series 2-1.
However, he will return during Pakistan’s tour of the West Indies as he was included in the ODI team.
Pakistan and the West Indies will play three T20Is and three ODIs from August 1 to 12.
Pakistan Squad for West Indies T20I Series: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Nawaz, Sahibzada Farhan (wicketkeeper), Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Sufiyan Muqeem
Pakistan Squad for West Indies ODI Series: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Salman Ali Agha, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Mohammad Haris (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Sufiyan Muqeem
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