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Former Pakistan cricketer and coach Rashid Latif has challenged Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan to emulate Rohit Sharma’s tactical adaptability in T20 cricket. Latif praised Sharma for adjusting his game in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, where he led India to victory over South Africa in the final.
Sharma’s crucial contributions included 257 runs at a strike rate exceeding 156 and three vital half-centuries, demonstrating his leadership and batting prowess throughout the tournament.
Rohit Sharma changed himself for T20Is: Rashid Latif
That sounds like a positive observation from Rashid Latif regarding Rohit Sharma’s adaptation in T20Is. Latif seems to appreciate Rohit Sharma’s ability to adjust his approach, resulting in an improved strike rate. It’s always interesting to see how players evolve their game to meet the demands of different formats.
“If Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli can change their approach in T20Is, then why can’t Babar Azam? I will give you an example of Rohit Sharma. Have you seen the 50 Overs game? He changed himself. He changed himself by 190 degrees. It is possible to change. Because he made his decision that I will change myself”, Latif said.
In the context of IPL history, I’ve been observing since the same year. Initially, his strike rate ranged between 140 and 138. Over the past two years, however, it has risen to 160. He has transformed himself. Similar changes have been seen in Virat Kohli. If these two batsmen can adapt, then everyone else can too,” the 55-year-old elaborated.
Rashid Latif, the former Pakistan national team player from 1992 to 2003, has thrown down the gauntlet to Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, urging them to alter their batting approach in T20Is similar to Sharma. He emphasized that he would give them 5-8 matches to make the necessary adjustments.
“The player is missing. How do you make me play? Maybe I will play in a different way. I will tell Babar, you have to play like this. I will give you five matches. Five matches means five matches. That’s all. After that, you don’t have a place in the team”.
“There should be people who make such decisions. Rizwan, this is your number. This is the requirement. I am not giving you one match. Fine, I can give you eight matches”, he concluded. Have a look at the entire video below.
Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan faced challenges with their strike rates during the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. Despite being among the most experienced players for Pakistan, their team failed to advance past the group stage after losses to the USA and India.
Babar Azam accumulated 122 runs across 4 matches with an average exceeding 40, including a top score of 44. Meanwhile, Mohammad Rizwan managed 110 runs in the same number of games, averaging over 36. However, their strike rates were recorded at just above 101 and 90 respectively, which fell below the expected standards for T20Is.
