‘Why is he no 1 ranked batter’: Gautam Gambhir, Virendra Sehwag question Babar Azam’s form at World Cup

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The Pakistan captain, who is also the world’s No. 1-ranked ICC batsman, has been unable to capitalise on his starts and convert them into big hundreds. Azam has now become the latest target of criticism from former players, who feel that Azam has not played the sort of impactful shots expected of a player of his calibre.

Adding to Azam’s trouble is the fact that his team has been all but ruled out of the tournament after the loss against South Africa. Azam’s men have not been able to leave a mark in the tournament with the just the two victories in their first two matches, followed by successive defeats against India, Australia, Afghanistan and South Africa. 

Gambhir and Sehwag slam Babar Azam for lack of ‘impactful knocks’:

Speaking to Star Sports, former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir said, “You want to talk about Babar’s captaincy and his batting…he scored three fifties in the last six games. I don’t know why he is No.1 ranked ICC batter. Yes he has scored a lot of runs in the last two years. He has 19 centuries to his name but records and rankings are all too very overrated. A No.1 player is that who helps you win matches. He has scored a lot of runs but is yet to play an impactful knock where he has single-handedly won the game for the team. He scored three fifties in this World Cup but Pakistan went past 300 only once, against Australia, which they eventually lost,”

Gambhir’s opening partner Virendra Sehwag was also critical of Azam, arguing that Pakistan’s skipper was only using his form to keep his place in the side. While speaking to Cricbuzz, Sehwag said, “It wasn’t a bad innings. Pakistan lost two early wickets and he held one end, helping the team to revive. But is he satisfied with just a 50? No. Any other No. 3 batter would want to take that 50 and convert it into a big score. Had he done that, Pakistan would have ended with 300-plus total. And that is where the difference is drawn. Great players don’t let go of such opportunities. Babar Azam is using his form to the extent that he only keeps his place in the side,”

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Updated: 29 Oct 2023, 08:02 AM IST