T20 World Cup 2022: Top 10 Babar Azam memes after his sedate knock against England in the final

Pakistan captain Babar Azam faced the ire of fans after his sedate knock against England in the final of the T20 World Cup 2022 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Sunday, November 13.

England skipper Jos Buttler won the toss and elected to field first in the all-important summit clash. Mohammad Rizwan (15) and Babar failed to provide a brisk start for their side. Sam Curran dismissed Rizwan in the fifth over with just 29 on the scoreboard and gave England their first breakthrough.

Mohammad Haris (eight off 12 balls) came in next and tried to swing at everything but could not connect much. Babar tried to anchor the innings at the other end by rotating the strike and running hard between the wickets. However, he failed to convert it into a big knock and got out.

Adil Rashid (2/22) deceived him with a wonderful delivery and dismissed him in the 12th over to deliver a massive blow to Pakistan. Shan Masood (38) and Shadab Khan (20) played some aggressive shots to keep their side on track for a decent total.

However, Curran (3/12) and Chris Jordan (2/27) bowled exceptionally at the death and restricted Pakistan to a below-par score of 137/8.

Speaking at the mid-innings break, Adil Rashid reflected on the action from the first innings and said:

"As a team, we've been doing well. It's a collective effort here. The team is happy with my work and that's all that matters. It was about trying to assess the pitch and the conditions. I looked to bowl the odd one slower which is my strength.

"(Key to the chase?) I think running a lot of twos and threes - long boundaries out there. If you had given us 137 we'd have been very happy. Hopefully, we'll get the job done."