Mickey Arthur: “It’s an interesting one. I would always have Babar Azam in the team. I think he’s a wonderful player. I’m not sure what’s happened over the past couple of years, but the Babar I know is absolute class”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur has made it clear that he would never drop batsman Babar Azam as he is “absolute class”.
Azam has been out of the T20I team for quite some time, even though he was one of the most consistent run-scorers.
Unfortunately for the 30-year-old, he was lambasted for his low strike-rate on numerous occasions, which could be the reason why he ultimately lost his spot.
Nonetheless, Arthur noted that Azam is “a wonderful player” and insisted he would always have the Lahore native in his team.
“It’s an interesting one. I would always have Babar Azam in the team. I think he’s a wonderful player. I’m not sure what’s happened over the past couple of years, but the Babar I know is absolute class,” he was quoted as saying by ARY News.
Azam recently captained the Peshawar Zalmi in the 2025 Pakistan Super League (PSL) and made 288 runs in 10 games, which included three fifties, at an average of 36 and a strike-rate of 128.57.
Following PSL 10, Azam did not feature in Pakistan’s three-match T20I series against Bangladesh in Lahore, which the men in green won 3-0.
He was also overlooked for the tour of Bangladesh, where Pakistan were beaten 2-1 in the T20I series.
Pakistan are now touring the West Indies for three T20Is and three ODIs.
Azam didn’t play in the T20Is once again, which the men in green won 2-1.
He is now set to take part in the ODI series, which will begin on August 9 in Trinidad.
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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