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Former cricketer Basit Ali has taken a dig at Babar Azam’s father, Azam Siddique, questioning his cricketing credentials and sarcastically suggesting that if he considers himself Babar’s coach, he should focus on fixing his son’s technical flaws.
Basit’s comments came in response to Siddique’s recent Instagram post, where he defended his son following his exclusion from Pakistan’s T20I squad for the New Zealand series.
In his post, Siddique not only backed his son but also issued a strong warning to former cricketers, urging them to choose their words carefully when criticizing.
“To the great former cricketers, I humbly request you to be mindful of your words. If someone chooses to respond, you might not be able to handle it. You are part of the past, and there is no way back for you,” Siddique wrote.
Addressing those who claim that Babar’s father speaks too much, Siddique didn’t hold back. “For those who say that ‘his father talks too much,’ let me make it clear—I was his first and only coach, spokesperson, mentor, and above all, his father,” he added.
He further advised cricket fans to check the playing records of Babar’s critics before taking their words seriously, urging them to visit the PCB website to analyze their performances.
Responding to these remarks on ARY’s show Har Lamha Purjosh, Basit Ali mockingly questioned Siddique’s authority in coaching Babar.
“We didn’t know Babar Azam’s coach is his father [Azam Siddique]. That’s great! He must have played a lot of cricket, then. Not sure how many Test matches he played, but I request him to fix Babar’s technical flaws,” Basit remarked in a taunting tone.
Meanwhile, former wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal also weighed in on the matter, stating that while every father has the right to support his son, making public statements after a player is dropped is not a good practice.
“Every father loves his son. Some openly express it, while others leave it to fate. There’s no doubt about Babar’s contributions to Pakistan cricket, but he must evolve with modern-day demands. However, posting statements after a player is dropped is unnecessary,” Akmal said.
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