Wasim Akram: “Nobody can take the place of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Legendary Pakistan left-arm fast bowler Wasim Akram believes nobody can take Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan’s spots in the national team.
Azam and Rizwan have seemingly lost their places in the T20I squad as they have not been picked for the national team’s last few assignments in the shortest format.
The duo used to be Pakistan’s go-to openers in T20Is as they consistently scored runs and won matches for the men in green.
However, they were constantly criticised for batting too slow, which may have ultimately led to them being ousted from the team.
Nonetheless, Wasim thinks the pair still have a future as he doesn’t see any one good enough to replace them at the moment.
“Nobody can take the place of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam,” he was quoted as saying by Khel Shel on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Azam and Rizwan missed Pakistan’s three-match series against Bangladesh in Lahore, the T20I tour of Bangladesh, the T20I series against the West Indies, and the T20I tri-series against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Afghanistan.
They also weren’t picked for the 2025 Asia Cup, where the men in green lost to India in the final.
Pakistan are now taking on South Africa in a series that will consist of two Tests, three T20Is, and three ODIs.
In the ongoing 1st Test in Lahore, Azam scored 23 runs in the 1st innings, while Rizwan remained unbeaten on 62 at the end of the 1st day.
Pakistan squad for South Africa Test series: Shan Masood (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Asif Afridi, Babar Azam, Faisal Akram, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Noman Ali, Rohail Nazir (wicketkeeper), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi
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