Tim Neilsen: “The greatest thing I learnt about Babar Azam and other players was that they are human too, they feel the pressure. They want to perform so badly for Pakistan, their families and themselves that they put a lot of pressure on themselves”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan assistant coach Tim Nielsen said batsman Babar Azam is human too as he feels the pressure to perform every time.
He noted that Azam and all the other Pakistan players are determined to make the most of their opportunities as they want to make their country, family and themselves proud.
As a result of this, many of them put immense pressure on their shoulders, which is something not many people realise.
“The greatest thing I learnt about Babar Azam and other players was that they are human too, they feel the pressure. They want to perform so badly for Pakistan, their families and themselves that they put a lot of pressure on themselves,” Neilsen told Cricwick as quoted by PakPassion 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.
Despite having a solid campaign in PSL 10, he was left out of Pakistan’s squad for their three-match T20I series against Bangladesh.
He also missed the tour of Bangladesh, where the men in green lost the T20I series 2-1.
Pakistan are now touring the West Indies for three T20Is and three ODIs, but Azam was only selected for the ODI leg.
The men in green won the T20I series 2-1.
The ODI series will start 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