"He is not up there with the top 15 batters in the world in T20 cricket" - Michael Vaughan on Babar Azam's short format concerns
Former England captain Michael Vaughan does not consider Babar Azam among the top 15 batters in the shortest format of the game. The Pakistan skipper is the leading run-scorer in T20I cricket but has often copped blame for his conservative and outdated approach.
Azam has scored 90 runs in three matches in the ongoing T20 World Cup, but it has come at a strike rate of just 104.65. Pakistan's ongoing batting woes from top to bottom have led to the skipper even demoting himself to No. 3, as Saim Ayub opened the innings in the win against Canada.
Apart from his batting, he has also been lambasted for his captaincy and his body language in general. Babar Azam was reinstated as white-ball captain in March after he had relinquished the role following the team's exit from the 2023 ODI World Cup in India.
Michael Vaughan does not see Babar Azam as a T20 captain.
"I still don't see him as a T20 captain. I see him as a Test and 50-over captain, in those formats in which he excels as a player. In T20 cricket, his game is very good , a pure player, but he is not up there with the top 15 batters in the world in T20 cricket. I think there are better players than him up the order," Vaughan said on Cricbuzz.
Pakistan have been eliminated from the 2024 T20 World Cup in the group stages. The losses to the USA and India proved too costly, as the co-hosts pipped them for the second spot in Group A.
"There is no point in changing once again" - Michael Vaughan on whether PCB should remove Babar Azam as captain
Pakistan players, particularly Babar Azam, are in for a rough time back home following their early exit from the 2024 T20 World Cup. PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has already said the team needs a "major surgery."
"I hope I don't see them changing again. Somewhere they got to have some consistency. There is no point in changing once again, so even if he is not perfectly suited to captaining T20 cricket, I do think, for this period, they should stay consistent, because the last thing Pakistan need is more kamikaze, swapping and changing, and overreacting," Vaughan said.
"At the moment, on paper, it is just not a good team. It is down to the coaches and the selectors, and the system back in Pakistan to give the captain and coach a pool of players to choose from. They probably have them," Vaughan added.
Pakistan's dead-rubber match against Ireland is scheduled to take place on Sunday, June 16, in Lauderhill, Florida.