Srinagar: In a major statement former India cricketer and coach Ravi Shastri has pointed out what role Babar Azam should play in Pakistan team after resigning from captaincy.
After Pakistan’s disappointing show in the 2023 World Cup, Babar Azam stepped down from his role as captain across all three formats of the game.
Shan Masood was appointed as Test captain, while Shaheen Shah Afridi was made the captain of the T20I team.
During a commentary stint during ongoing Pakistan vs Australia Test series with Fox Sports, Shastri highlighted Babar’s valuable experience and knowledge and emphasized the importance of effective communication, particularly with the bowlers.
“I want Babar Azam to be Vice Captain, he has experience, he has some knowledge he can communicate with bowler and he should do. I can say it on his face that I don’t wanna see quite Babar Azam on the field, there should be some communication, some aggression on the field,” Ravi Shastri on Fox Sports before play of Day 4.
Australia convincingly defeated Pakistan by 360 runs in the Test series opener in Perth, securing an early 1-0 lead. The Aussies displayed a clinical performance, dominating the majority of the contest.
After relinquishing captaincy, it was expected that Babar would play with more freedom and would be back among runs, but it didn’t work out well as he registered low scores in both innings of the Perth Test. Babar has an average of 23.14 from 7 Test innings in 2023, without a single hundred or fifty.