Babar Azam has been Pakistan’s most prolific batter for a number of years but there have been question marks over his leadership credentials. However, a lot of the doubters were silenced when the right-handed batter led Pakistan to the finals of the 2022 T20 World Cup. Babar’s task wasn’t easy as he had to motivate his team after they suffered a demoralising defeat earlier in the tournament against arch-rivals India.
“What Babar has done for Pakistan is a sign of a great player. He has scored runs with great consistency. When he took over the captaincy, many stated that there would be a dip in his performance. However, he was about to double and triple it. He has matured as a captain. He is no longer weak with the team selection. He is not the same Babar that he was two years ago. He learned from his mistakes,” Rashid said while speaking to Cricket Pakistan.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) recently announced their squad for the upcoming Asia Cup. Mohammad Rizwan and Mohammad Haris were the two wicketkeeper-batters picked in the side as Sarfaraz was overlooked. While Rashid was all praise for the young and talented Haris, he felt that the experienced Sarfaraz should have been picked ahead of him.
“Mohammad Haris is a wonderful player and has done well in T20 cricket. He is a very dangerous player in the powerplay. However, I believe his ODI career will start after the World Cup. Yes, he could succeed here too, but Sarfaraz is a very experienced player and should have been in the squad. You sideline a player so easily and bring a new guy in his place,” said Rashid
