Australia’s power-hitting coach Young backs Babar Azam amid criticism

Australia’s power-hitting coach Shannon Young came out in support of Pakistan white-ball captain and ace batter Babar Azam, who has been under criticism for his below-par performances.

In an interview with the local media outlet, Shannon Young termed Babar Azam a world-class player before asserting if a player of his calibre was in Australia, they would back him instead of criticising him.

“He [Babar] is well; he is a world-class player. If there was a player like Babar [Azam] in Australia, we would have been supporting him instead of criticising him,” said Young.

“In Australia, we back them in, and we say they’ve been world-class players, they’re gonna be world-class players again.

“I think sometimes the passion tips over that these guys carry so much expectation through Pakistan’s one of the best players in the world; he’s gonna be fine.”

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Shannon Young also revealed his plans to bring young Australian cricketers to Pakistan on his next visit and provide them with the opportunity to partake in high-performance training sessions.

“We’re hoping that maybe April. Previously, I’ve always wanted to come to Pakistan, so I got the opportunity, and I knew really early on that Australians would love Pakistan. So we’re gonna bring hopefully a couple of tours to play cricket here,” he said.

“I’ve always wanted to visit Pakistan, and now I got the chance. First, I spent four days in Karachi, and now I’m in Lahore for another four days. In the past, I’ve toured India many times with cricketers,” Young added.

Earlier, Shannon Young met Pakistan captain Babar Azam, who approached him to enhance his power-hitting abilities to cater to the demands of modern-day cricket.

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