London: Former Pakistan captain Waqar Younis believes Babar Azam’s batting is being affected by the pressure of leadership and says Pakistan could be losing a quality player by handing him the captaincy.
Former Pakistan fast-bowling great Waqar Younis has questioned the decision to give Babar Azam the Test captaincy again, arguing that the leadership burden appears to affect the batter’s performances.
Waqar, who has previously served in several coaching roles with the Pakistan men’s team, said Babar is a technically accomplished batter but appears to struggle when additional responsibility is placed on his shoulders.
“I have seen him as a player. Technically, a very sound player. Very complete and elegant player. As a player, I don’t personally see anything wrong with him,” Waqar said at an event.
“But I think with the captaincy pressure, he takes a little too much on himself. Whenever he takes this responsibility or is given a responsibility, I don’t think he performs that well.”
Waqar went on to suggest that Pakistan could be compromising Babar’s contribution as a batter by continuing to make him captain.
“So I think we are losing a player if we are going to give him this responsibility because he struggles to handle that. You have to be strong as a person, and you have to be really out there and back your players. If you cannot back your players, it’s unfair to the players and the job,” he added.
Babar’s captaincy under scrutiny
The comments come after Pakistan endured a difficult Test series against England, suffering a 3-0 clean sweep.
The series also became controversial after the Pakistan Cricket Board sent seven players and two coaches back home following the team’s defeats in the first two Tests.
Babar, ahead of the third Test, said he had not been consulted over the changes, a remark that drew criticism from several former Pakistan players, including Wasim Akram.
The former Pakistan captain has also faced increasing scrutiny over his recent Test batting record. Babar has not scored a Test century since December 2022, when he reached the milestone against New Zealand.
He came close to ending the drought during Pakistan’s recent matches but was unable to convert his starts into a century.
Babar returns to Test captaincy
Babar returned as Pakistan’s Test captain earlier this year after Shan Masood was removed from the position following Pakistan’s two-match series defeat against Bangladesh.
His return to leadership has therefore placed him under renewed scrutiny, particularly with Pakistan struggling for consistency in Test cricket.
Pakistan are currently ninth in the World Test Championship standings with four points. The team also suffered an 11-point deduction for a slow over-rate in the third Test at Edgbaston in Birmingham.
Waqar’s comments have added another layer to the debate over whether Babar’s long-term role should focus solely on batting or whether Pakistan should continue to rely on him as a leader across formats.
