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Rashid Latif, a former Pakistan cricketer, voiced strong criticism against Babar Azam’s leadership following Pakistan’s underwhelming performance in the T20 World Cup 2024 held in the West Indies and the USA. Latif remarked that Babar Azam’s decision to accept the captaincy for a second term was the “biggest mistake” of his career.
Pakistan’s campaign in the T20 World Cup 2024 ended prematurely as they failed to advance to the Super 8s after defeats to the United States of America and eventual champions India in their initial group stage matches. Despite bouncing back with two consecutive victories, Babar Azam’s team couldn’t secure a top-two finish in Group A.
In addition to the team’s shortcomings, Babar Azam himself faced scrutiny for his batting performance in the tournament. The right-handed batsman scored 122 runs in 4 matches at an average of 40.66, but his strike rate of 101.67 was deemed disappointing. Pakistan’s early exit marked their first failure to progress beyond the group stage in the T20 World Cup since 2014.
Rashid Latif expressed his belief that Babar Azam should not have been given another term as captain after the ODI World Cup, criticizing Babar’s leadership during his second stint. Latif described this decision as potentially detrimental to Babar’s career, suggesting it could weaken his overall performance.
“Babar Azam shouldn’t have been removed as captain after the ODI World Cup in India. Shaheen came in to replace him. But Babar’s second tenure as captain was weak. Babar looked weak. This is not the way team selection should be done,” Latif was quoted as saying by TOI.
“Babar didn’t fight (in the T20 World Cup). His biggest mistake was accepting the captaincy again. If he continues as captain, it will be an even bigger mistake. He is drifting away from his game,” the former cricketer added.
Babar Azam initially stepped down as captain across all formats following Pakistan’s disappointing performance in the 2023 ODI World Cup. However, PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi reinstated him as the captain of the white-ball cricket teams. Shaheen Afridi, who had led the T20I team in just one series, was removed from his role as T20I captain.
During his tenure as captain, Babar Azam, 29, was unable to lead Pakistan to victory in major tournaments such as the Asia Cup and World Cups in both ODIs and T20Is, though the team came close on several occasions. They reached the semi-finals in 2021 and finished as runners-up in the subsequent edition in Australia in 2022.
Babar Azam has indicated that he will leave the decision regarding his captaincy up to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) after the conclusion of Pakistan’s last match in the T20 World Cup 2024. Pakistan’s upcoming cricket schedule includes a two-match Test series against Bangladesh in August 2024, part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2023–2025 cycle.
