Inzamam-ul-Haq: “If Babar boosts his strike-rate, it will positively impact… Pakistan”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq believes the national team will benefit greatly if Babar Azam were to improve his strike-rate.
The 30-year-old used to be Pakistan’s go-to opener in T20Is, but was heavily criticised on a regular basis for batting too slow and putting pressure on the middle order batsmen.
Given how much international cricket has changed and the need to play in a more aggressive way, Inzamam urged Azam to try boosting the speed at which he scores his runs.
“If Babar boosts his strike-rate, it will positively impact… Pakistan,” he was quoted as saying by Geo Super.
Azam was recently involved in the 2025 Pakistan Super League (PSL), where he captained the Peshawar Zalmi and made 288 runs in 10 games, which included three fifties, at an average of 36 and a strike-rate of 128.57.
Despite doing well in PSL 10, Azam was overlooked for Pakistan’s three-match T20I series against Bangladesh in Lahore, which they won 3-0.
He also missed out on selection for Pakistan’s tour of Bangladesh, where the men in green lost the T20I series 2-1.
However, Azam is set to return to action for the men in green during their ongoing tour of the West Indies as he was included in the ODI squad.
Pakistan and the West Indies are playing three T20Is and three ODIs.
The men in green hold a 1-0 lead in the T20I series as they won the first match by 14 runs.
The 2nd T20I will take place on August 3 in Lauderhill.
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