"You are a fake King!"- Ahmed Shehzad blasts Babar Azam over stats in T20 tournaments amidst T20 World Cups
Former Pakistan opener Ahmed Shehzad made several scathing remarks on current captain Babar Azam and claimed that the latter's stellar stats are nothing but a myth. Shehzad also compared his performances with Babar's in T20 tournaments for Pakistan.
Babar has a massive fan following in Pakistan and is admirably called as the 'King' by his fans. However, Shehzad claimed that the star batter was just making a fool of those who admire him by showing the reality of the Pakistan captain's numbers in big events.
In a video of a Pakistan TV show that has gone viral on social media, Ahmed Shehzad said about Babar Azam:
"You have a strike rate of 112. You have an average of 26 in ICC events. You have played 207 balls in the powerplay but haven't hit a single six. I think my stats from eight years ago are better than yours. You are a fake King! We play to help win Pakistan tournaments but you are only making a fool of fans on social media with your stats."
Shehzad also made some other stunning accusations against Babar, claiming that the latter purposely avoided picking players from domestic cricket on merit because he wanted to maintain his friendships with some of the non-performers.
Ahmed Shehzad wants Babar Azam to apologize to Pakistan fans
Ahmed Shehzad has claimed that it is high time for Babar Azam to apologize to Pakistan fans and return to domestic cricket to prove his mettle. He claimed Babar had been given all the backing for five years and should apologize as he couldn't deliver any trophy for Pakistan.
"The least you can do now is raise your hand and say that 'I was given all the support and resources from PCB. I got the players that I wanted but I couldn't deliver silverware for Pakistan. I am really sorry.' Now it is your time to go back to domestic cricket to improve your stats and then come back in the Pakistan team," Shehzad stated in the same show.
Pakistan beat Canada by seven wickets to stay alive in the race to the Super 8 stage. However, they will have to beat Ireland and then hope that the USA lose to Ireland to qualify for the next phase of the T20 World Cup.