Salman Butt: “What work have the coaches who worked with Babar Azam done with Babar? Babar was [the] world number one in T20s, instead of improving Babar, they have pushed Babar even further back”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has criticised Babar Azam’s decline in T20Is, saying the coaches who worked with him have pushed him further back.
Salman noted that the 31-year-old was once the top-ranked T20I batsman in the world but has suffered a fall from grace, now batting as low as number four and even being dropped from the side at one stage.
Demanding answers, the 41-year-old questioned how Azam has taken steps backwards instead of making improvements to his game.
“What work have the coaches who worked with Babar Azam done with Babar? Babar was [the] world number one in T20s. Instead of improving Babar, they have pushed Babar even further back,” Salman was quoted as saying by journalist Arfa Feroz Zake on X.
Azam recently captained Pakistan in their two-Test series against the West Indies and made 193 runs, which included two fifties, at an average of 96.50.
Currently, he is leading the men in green in their three-Test series against England, but missed the 1st Test in Leeds due to a finger injury.
He returned for the ongoing 2nd Test at Lord’s, where he made eight runs in the first innings.
Pakistan Squad for England Test Series: Babar Azam (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Fazal, Ali Usman, Azan Awais, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Awais Zafar, Ghazi Ghori (wicketkeeper), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood and Ubaid Shah