Ramiz asks Babar, Misbah to rely on youth for World T20

KARACHI Former Pak­istan captain and renowned cricket commentator Ramiz Raja, in an interview said Babar Azam is a world class player and even can do better than Virat Kohli but he needs a conducive atmosphere to express himself, both as player and captain. “There is no doubt about Babar Azam’s ability, he is a world class player,” said Ramiz. “When people ask me about comparison betw­een Babar Azam with likes of Virat Kohli and Steve Smith I would say he can do even better than Kohli but he needs a conducive atmosphere and the freedom to express himself more as a player and as captain.” Ramiz said he has no issue with seniors players like Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik but is more concerned about the selectors who selected them and want to try seniors again and again rather than opting for young blood, especially in the T20 format. “T20 is a format for young guns and I don’t know why we have been insisting on selecting the tried and tested seniors in the recent times,” asked Ramiz. “We have many youngsters who can play very well in the limited overs formats and can cement their places in T20 & ODI teams and the must be given a fair chance to showcase their talent. Ramiz emphasised that Misbah-ulHaq needs to have a clear dimension from the Pakistan Cricket Board to build future teams of Pakistan in all the three formats. “I don’t know about PCB’s thinking about Misbah’s role, but I feel that instead of playing safe all the time for the fear of losing, both PCB and Misbah should focus on the future and chances must be given to youngsters in white ball cricket and that’s the only way we can build teams for the future.” Ramiz also reiterated his stance on tainted players and regretted that Pakistan, by bringing back such players to the national team, have shown that “we haven’t learn from the past.” “I have always maintained zero tolerance for the tainted players,” he said. “In the past we compromised our dignity and principles to bring back tainted players on the pretext that they are very talented,” said Ramiz in an obvious reference to Mohammad Amir. “But it is very unfair to repeatedly select tainted players in the national team. That spoils the team spirit as well as our image as a nation.” “It is also a concern if we are not able to find replacements of these tainted players and they are allowed to make a comeback after all their misdeeds.— Agencies