"He will have to score three match-winning hundreds" - Akhtar feels Babar needs to have a landmark campaign to survive in white-ball setup
Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar has alerted Babar Azam amid scrutiny over his form in the lead-up to the 2025 Champions Trophy. The former captain has had a year to forget across formats but has a chance to evolve as a white-ball player after relinquishing captaincy.
Pakistan did not play an ODI match for almost a year after their 2023 ODI World Cup clash against England. The Men in Green, led by new captain Mohammad Rizwan, secured a historic ODI series win in Australia. The second-string team also executed a comeback to win a three-match series against Zimbabwe.
Babar Azam looked in sublime touch in the series opener against Australia at the MCG but needs more runs under his belt to impress the new white-ball management led by Aaqib Javed. The former pacer replaced Gary Kirsten in the role and took over from Jason Gillespie, who was there on an interim basis.
Javed was in the reformed selection committee that approved the decision to drop Babar Azam from the Test team midway through the England Test series. As far as ODIs are concerned, Pakistan are scheduled to play in South Africa and a tri-series at home before the 2025 Champions Trophy.
Shoaib Akhtar recently opined that the ace batter has to step up and score a lot of runs to prove his worth to the new management.
"He is our star player and has my backing but with the new management and the new thinking, he will have to show performances. Otherwise, he will not be considered for ODIs and T20Is. Babar needs to be at his best in the Champions Trophy. He will have to score three match-winning hundreds; otherwise, the path is going to be difficult for him," Shoaib Akhtar said on PTV Sports (via Hindustan Times).
Azam's T20I approach and numbers are equally concerning, as he has failed to evolve with time. He had a dismal 2024 T20 World Cup campaign, where Pakistan failed to reach the Super 8 stage. The batter also recorded poor scores in the recent T20I series whitewash against Australia.
"How Babar batted in Australia, everybody saw... we are not targeting anyone" - Aaqib Javed
The ace batter's omission from the Test side was put down to workload concerns rather than form. In his absence, Kamran Ghulam and Saud Shakeel handled the middle-order, while the veteran pair of Sajid Khan and Noman Ali spun the side to a series win against England.
“Look, cricket is not about individuals. In the end, whatever we do as selectors, the idea is for Pakistan to win. How Babar batted in Australia, everybody saw. We are not targeting anyone. We know that Babar, (Mohammad) Rizwan, and Fakhar (Zaman) have loads of experience and have delivered in the past," Aaqib Javed told media recently (via PTI/Sportstar).
Pakistan's tour of South Africa commences on December 10 with the three-match T20I series.