Former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed once again came out in support of the current all-format captain Babar Azam and supported him as an opener in T20s.
Sarfaraz, while speaking to a program, rated Babar as the top batter in T20s and also supported his batting position in the shortest format. “Babar is a top batter in the T20 format and there must be no doubt about his abilities,” said Sarfaraz.
“Even in my captaincy, I will let him play as an opener. Babar is a player who can anchor innings if he gets support from the other end. With him being an opener, any team can achieve a good total,” he added.
Babar has been the most consistent batter for Pakistan in all formats but the right-handed batter often faced criticism for his strike rate and several former cricketers and fans demanded his demotion in the batting order.
Earlier this week, Sarfaraz also backed Babar as Pakistan’s captain and claimed that he is improving with time. “There is always room for improvement. Babar is getting better as a captain. He has started doing good and I hope will keep on getting better,” said Sarfaraz.
“In Pakistan, making a mistake is a sin. I know Babar makes mistakes but give him some time. It takes time to become a captain and build a team. We need to be patient and support Babar as he is our captain.
“Gradually, Babar will learn from his mistakes if he continues as a captain in the future. I have played under him recently, and I have seen improvement in his captaincy. He will do good for Pakistan.”
Sarfaraz is considered as one of the most successful Pakistani captains. He is the only Pakistani captain two have won two ICC trophies — the Champions Trophy and U19 World Cup, also shared a piece of advice for his successor Babar, stating that he needs to improve communication with his players.
“My suggestion to him is that he needs to improve communication with his players. Good communication will make his players confident and it will produce big results,” he concluded.—INP
