"He Could Not Improve...": Shahid Afridi Slams Babar Azam's Captaincy After Pakistan's Elimination From Cricket World Cup 2023

Former Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi has lashed out at Babar Azam's capataincy after the national cricket team's poor show at Cricket World Cup 2023. Pakistan lost five of their nine matches played in the league stage of the tournament and failed to qualify for the semi-finals. Their defeats also included one at the hands of Afghanistan. The Hashmatullah Shahidi-led side outplayed Babar Azam and company by eight wickets. Criticising Babar, Afridi said that the player has not improved as captain in the past few years.

"I'm a fan of Babar. Babar is a big player, for me he is like a younger brother. I wanted that Babar to join the list of top captains in the world. He's been captain since four years or so, there was never a sword hanging over his head. We all supported him during this phase. We thought in three-four years he would be well groomed to handle the responsibility as a captain. He would mould himself as a captain. But this didn't happen. He could not improve in this period and could not prove himself as a good leader," said Afridi during an event in Karachi.

Afridi was disappointed with Babar's captaincy at the Cricket World Cup 2023 in India.

"We have seen plenty of errors during the World Cup," he said, adding, "A leader's role is to take everyone along. He cannot have just one or two players who are doing well, he needs to have eight or nine players who are playing good cricket and whom he can consult on decisions."

After Pakistan's disastrous campaign in the Cricket World Cup 2023, Morne Morkel stepped down as the bowling coach of the team.

Besides the Pakistan team, Babar has also come under lot of scrutiny for his capaincy and his batting.