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Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has raised concerns regarding Pakistan’s decision to have Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan open the innings in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. Despite being two of Pakistan’s top batters, Babar and Rizwan have opened in two World Cup matches so far. Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) president Ramiz Raja has supported this decision, likening them to batting stalwarts Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma and endorsing them as Pakistan’s preferred opening pair for the tournament.
Ramiz highlighted that while Babar and Rizwan may not have the same strike rates as Kohli and Rohit, they offer reliability and stability, often providing a solid start during the powerplay overs. Interestingly, Pakistan’s only victory in the T20 World Cup came after Babar was moved to the No. 3 position in the batting order.
Manjrekar’s stance suggests that Pakistan may need to reconsider their opening pair of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan in the T20 World Cup. He argues that the two top batters may not be the best fit for the opening slots in the 2024 edition. Manjrekar approves of Pakistan’s recent move to position Babar at No. 3 in their match against Canada, indicating a positive shift in strategy. This adjustment implies that Pakistan is open to exploring alternative batting arrangements to optimize their lineup for better performance. “I’m glad they have made a change in the batting order. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan can’t be opening together. Both of them were not really keen to strike early, so they put somebody else in at the top. Left-hand, right-hand combination is not such a bad thing. So some good things happening there,” Manjrekar told Star Sports.
There’s still some worry regarding Pakistan’s batting performance. In the T20 World Cup opener against the USA, Babar Azam managed 44 runs from 43 balls, while Mohammad Rizwan scored 9 runs off 8 balls before getting dismissed. Their partnership at the top only yielded 26 runs against India in Pakistan’s narrow 6-run loss in New York. With two losses in Group A, Pakistan is now in a must-win situation as they prepare to face Ireland on Sunday. Despite their efforts, concerns persist about the consistency and effectiveness of Pakistan’s batting lineup. Mohammad Amir is coming into his own. So I see them just being better than Ireland to win the game. But once they get into the Super Eight, that is going to be another sort of acid test for them because they are not looking as good as some of the other teams that have gone through,” Manjrekar added.
