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Pakistan wrapped up their ICC T20 World Cup 2024 journey positively with a hard-fought victory over Ireland in Florida. Opting to bowl first under favorable conditions for bowlers, Pakistan’s fast bowlers wreaked havoc, reducing Ireland to a precarious 32-6. Shaheen Afridi’s explosive spell saw him claim 3 wickets early on, making batting a daunting task for the Irish.
Despite a lower-order fightback led by Gareth Delany and Josh Little, Ireland managed to reach a modest 106-9. In response, Pakistan started their chase cautiously but soon found themselves struggling at 62-6. Captain Babar Azam, however, remained composed and steered his team across the finish line.
Reflecting on the tournament, Babar Azam’s batting performance was below par, scoring 122 runs in 4 matches at a strike rate of 101.66. His subdued scoring rate has drawn criticism from various experts, highlighting challenges both as a batsman and as a captain during the campaign.
Shoaib Malik advocates for Babar Azam to relinquish captaincy and prioritize batting. In an interview with a local sports channel, Malik expressed that he would have stepped down if he were in Babar Azam’s shoes.
“I immediately would have resigned from the captaincy and directed all of my focus on my cricket. It happened to me once, and I was offered the role again in 2009-10, but I did not accept the offer. The reason was simple, I just wanted to focus on my cricket so if I were in his place, I would have resigned immediately,” Malik said.
“I am not just saying this, my argument is backed by Babar’s numbers as captain, but I am willing to sideline the statistics. If he shows improvement and plays well for the country and team then he should definitely continue as captain. But there is no improvement,” the 42-year-old added.
Babar Azam took over from Shaheen Afridi after a single T20I series. Pakistan’s captaincy has sparked significant debate recently. Babar led the team in the ODI World Cup 2023 but stepped down following their failure to reach the semifinals. Shaheen Afridi then assumed the captaincy but was dismissed after Pakistan lost a T20I series against New Zealand. Following the appointment of the new chairman Mohsin Naqvi, Babar regained the captaincy. However, Pakistan suffered a group stage exit for the first time under his leadership.
