"50 Off 60 Or 70 Is Of No Use": Gautam Gambhir Rips Into Pakistan Skipper Babar Azam

24.10.2023 - 03:33 sports.ndtv.com

The Babar Azam-led Pakistan cricket team is in a tricky situation at the Cricket World Cup. They have lost against teams like India and Australia.

The race to semi-final is still open but the Babar Azam-led side needs to win a series of matches to keep their path smooth in the last four race.

Ahead of the Cricket World Cup, much was expected from Pakistan captain Babar Azam. Ranked among the top batters in the world, Babar Azam is often considered one of the best batting talents in the modern era. (World Cup 2023 points table) However, so far in the World Cup ahead of Pakistan's game against Afghanistan on October 23, Babar Azam's list of scores read 5, 10, 50, 18.

Against Afghanistan in Chennai, Babar was out for 74 off 92 balls. Former Indian cricket team opener Gautam Gambhir, who in the past praised Babar Azam, felt that the Pakistan cricket team captain's display at the Cricket World Cup left much to be desired. "Babar Azam is under pressure, the entire team is under pressure.

cricket India Cricket Team Pakistan Cricket Team World Cup 2023 Babar Azam Gautam Gambhir Australia India Afghanistan Pakistan

During Pakistan's last match of Cricket World Cup 2023 on Saturday, their skipper Babar Azam hogged the limelight for the wrong reason. Pakistan's game which was against England kicked off with captain Jos Buttler winning the toss and opting to bat first. On the first ball of the 41st over of the England innings, Shaheen Afridi dismissed Ben Stokes. As the Pakistan players gathered to congratulate the bowler, Babar seemingly tried to put Mohammad Rizwan's hands down while the wicketkeeper was trying to celebrate the wicket with his teammates.

"Expected Babar Azam To Be Top-2 Batter But...": Pakistan Great's Blunt World Cup Admission

Pakistan skipper Babar Azam remains one of the finest batters in the world but his Cricket World Cup 2023 campaign has been far from satisfactory. Babar's poor run of form with the bat has been one of the biggest talking points in the World Cup that saw the Pakistan team put a horror show on the field. Though it is likely that Babar would go on to lose his status as the captain of the team in the coming days, Pakistan legend Wasim Akram doesn't feel Babar should be made scapegoat of the team's World Cup failure. Misbah-ul-Haq, on the other hand, admitted that Babar was expected to be among the top-2 batters in the World Cup but that didn't happen.

Babar Azam "Will Make A Call Once...": Ex-Captain's Major Revelation On Star's Pakistan Captaincy Decision

With Pakistan cricket team bowing out of the Cricket World Cup without making an impact, the next big question for the side is the Babar Azam's captaincy. There have been several reports on the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) top brass rethinking about Babar Azam's captaincy. Former PCB chief Ramiz Raja has said that he met with Babar Azam ahead of the match against England in Kolkata. The former Pakistan cricket team captain revealed that Babar Azam was not really upbeat.

"Keep Believing Pakistan": Michael Vaughan Trolls Babar Azam And Co. Over Their Semi-Final Hopes

Pakistan will be needing a miracle to make it to the semi-finals of Cricket World Cup 2023 when they face a charged-up England at Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Saturday. New Zealand's net run-rate boosting five wicket-win over Sri Lanka on Thursday has virtually shattered Pakistan's semifinal hopes. The 1992 champions now have to beat England by an improbable margin to make it to the knockout round. New Zealand's NRR is +0.743 while Pakistan's is +0.036, and for the Babar Azam-led side to eclipse the former to qualify as the fourth side, it has to win by around 287 runs batting first. While chasing, Pakistan need to win with 284 balls to spare. That is an impractical task.

Did Babar Azam Stop Mohammad Rizwan From Celebrating? Social Media Reacts To Viral Video

"Keen To Lead...": Did Babar Azam Just Reveal His Pakistan Captaincy Future After World Cup?

Pakistan captain Babar Azam didn't hide his disappointment after a humiliating 93-run defeat to England in their last World Cup game in Kolkata on Saturday but hinted that he would like to lead the national team during its rebuilding phase in white-ball cricket. "We will sit together and take stock. We'll take positives from this and discuss mistakes. I'm keen to lead the rebuild," Babar said at the post-match presentation ceremony.