'The same happened when he was with Karachi Kings' - Former Pakistan cricketer lashes out at Babar Azam following 20-20 World Cup 2022

Pakistan Cricket team went through a seesaw of results during the recently concluded 20-20 World Cup 2022. Although the men in green made it to the final of the tournament against England it’s not alien to anyone that Babar Azam & co. were on the verge of an early exit from the marquee tournament in Australia.

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Pakistan was on the receiving end of harsh criticism from former cricketers and cricket fans as well following two consecutive defeats against India and Zimbabwe respectively.

Meanwhile, amidst the ups and downs for the men in green, there was something constant and it was skipper Babar Azam’s lean patch with the bat. Babar couldn’t even touch a double-digit in the first four matches and scored only one half-century in the semi-final against New Zealand. During the World Cup, most of the former Pakistan cricketers appealed for Babar to come at number 3 to bat as the latter continuously failed in the opening spot.

Subsequently, former veteran Pakistan spinner Danish Kaneria has come up with some hard and fast-lined criticism for the 29-year-old Pak skipper. Kaneria went on to call Babar a stubborn guy who is adamant about not changing his batting position.

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Don't know why Babar Azam doesn't want to play in the middle order - Danish Kaneria

"Babar Azam is stubborn. The same happened when he was with Karachi Kings too. Their management did not want him to play as an opener. But he was adamant to open because he cannot bat in the middle order. Don't know why Babar doesn't want to play in the middle order. Babar's stubbornness is only doing harm to Pakistani cricket. If Rizwan performs, then Babar also bats well. Babar starts his innings on a very slow note," said Kaneria in a video on his YouTube channel.

Later on, Kaneria also suggested that Babar should learn from the former Indian skipper and senior batter Virat Kohli.

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"When it comes to being selfless, there is no one like Virat Kohli. The team lost the World Cup under his captaincy, and he had to face criticism. He even lost his captaincy. Many raised questions about his place on the team. But he didn't give up. He gave his full support to the new captain and played at the number he asked him to. He has re-emerged with his form since the Asia Cup," he added later.