‘If the captain is selfish…’: Former Indian cricketer slams Babar Azam

Parthiv Patel slams Babar-led Pakistan as 'weakest team ever'

MUMBAI:

Former Indian cricketer-turned-commentator Parthiv Patel has slammed Pakistan captain Babar Azam, calling him a "selfish player" and describing Pakistan as a "weak team"

During an interview, Patel highlighted the Pakistan team's decline and expressed his concerns about Babar's leadership, stating, "When your captain is selfish, then there is no chance."

Despite being one of the pre-tournament favourites, Pakistan crashed out in the group stage after failing to win two of their four matches.

Captain Babar admitted that the team "weren't good as a team" throughout the tournament.

Patel reminisced about the era when Pakistan boasted superstars like Inzamam-ul-Haq, Shoaib Akhtar, Waqar Younis, Wasim Akram, Mohammad Yousuf, and Saqlain Mushtaq.

He contrasted this with the current team, which he described as the weakest, primarily featuring Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan.

"They have a very weak team now. Look at the team they used to have."

"This is the weakest Pakistan team," Patel remarked. "They don't match the T20 format. In an era where strike rates of 150-160 are crucial, their players are stuck at 120."

Patel also criticised Babar's decision to bat lower down the order, a move he found perplexing.

"Around the world, captains want to open the innings, but Babar prefers to play lower. When your captain does this, nothing can be achieved," he added.

Babar has not announced any plans to step down as Pakistan's T20I captain, saying that if he decides to leave the captaincy, he will announce it openly.

The Pakistan Cricket Board had previously removed Shaheen Afridi from the captaincy to reappoint Babar before the 2024 T20 World Cup.

Pakistan's early exit from the 2024 T20 World Cup was a major disappointment.

Pakistan struggled with their preparations, arriving in the USA without any warm-up games and having numerous practice sessions cancelled due to rain.

This lack of preparation proved costly, as Pakistan were unable to adapt to the conditions and were upset by the home team USA in a Super Over.

Pakistan also fell short against India, losing by 6 runs.