KARACHI: Pakistan’s interim head coach has backed star batter Babar Azam as an opener on Friday, despite his rough patch ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, starting next week.
Aqib, in a post-match press conference after New Zealand defeated Pakistan in the tri-nation series final, addressed the concerns regarding Babar’s elevation as an opener.
It is pertinent to mention here that Babar has been the mainstay for Pakistan for several years in the ODI format, scoring the bulk of runs.
His last One Day International century came against Nepal in the 2023 Asia Cup, while he has struggled in the recently concluded tri-series against South Africa and New Zealand.
The head coach was confident that the right-handed batter was due for a big innings, especially in an important match for us.
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“Babar has gotten good starts, but he needs to go deeper. He has an important innings due and I expect him to score in an important match for us,” said Aqib.
Aqib Javed also explained the rationale behind Star Batter’s promotion as an opener.
“The idea behind Babar’s promotion as an opener is that if you look at the away series against South Africa, he had to bat in the first over in all games.”
“Then Saim got injured and he had to open in Tests too. These pitches don’t have that kind of bounce and seam movement that could trouble the batters at the start. We wanted our best batter to make good use of the powerplay, that suits us more,” explained Aqib.
Aqib Javed described this squad as the best they have and expressed confidence in winning the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
“These bunch of players can do well in the upcoming tournament. You can score 350 if this team bats normally and goes down to number eight,” he said.
He further stated that this team has the capability to defeat any opposition.
“This lineup has everything it needs to beat any team,” remarked Pakistan’s head coach.
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