RidiculousMan
ODI Debutant
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2023
- Runs
- 11,104
Disclaimer: I'm not a professional cricketer. This is not professional advice. I don't expect Babar to even read this. I just want to write my thoughts as a former Babar fan.
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Respected Cricketer Babar Azam,
In a country of so many fast bowlers, it was rare to see a batter like Babar come in during the last decade and show promise in all three formats, particularly after the bleak days following the 2010 incident.
I remember how impressive Babar was in his home debut series, slowly progressing in the following years and in the CT17 under the watchful eye of Mickey and seniors like Hafeez and Malik. I remember watching him score record consecutive centuries against the West Indies.
He played a great innings in the 2019 World Cup vs New Zealand, and the world suddenly expected him to become something greater than just the young Babar. Someone whose name would resonate not only among Pakistan cricket fans but for every cricket fan across time and location.
I enjoyed watching him bat in 2020 and 2021. In particular, I remember Babar playing that smooth knock with Rizwan against India, handing Pakistan their first and only T20 World Cup victory. The whole nation was overjoyed, and for the time being, we thought we had a batter from Pakistan in the 2020s who could match the class, elegance, and consistency of any batter in the world.
I also remember his county stints during that period: his 100 for Somerset and his 100 against South Africa at Centurion in a big chase of 200, where he played, in my view, one of the best shots when he opened the face of the bat to a pitch-perfect yorker from Magala towards fine third man for a four. I'm talking about the time when Babar was showing his best batting in T20I cricket.
There was a feeling among fans that Babar might be the man. Maybe he is the batter who will become a legend in history, as he was doing with his performances and process.
Though that changed in the following year, and I saw Babar struggle to find consistent form across formats, particularly in T20Is. Of course, for a long period, Babar struggled to make a 100. But that was the least worrying aspect for me in his batting.
Somewhere between the 2023 World Cup and the 2024 T20 World Cup, amidst all the background chaos in the PCB, it felt like something was not right. Babar was not progressing as he should; in fact, he started to fall back. There were a lot of questions around his strike rate in the shortest format. He was seen practicing big hits, perhaps trying to evolve as a T20I batter. He was also rested for a few tours between then and now.
What these events aspired to become in the end made me, for the first time ever, lose hope in Babar as a batter. Not because he was struggling with the bat, but because it felt like he stopped learning. He refused to sacrifice his position as a batter for the greater good of the team. I can understand how it must have felt to be on top of the world and then suddenly be asked to make room for new youngsters and take more responsibility as a batter. It can be scary.
I was particularly disappointed and annoyed as a cricket fan to see Babar's apparent inability to accept his flaws as a T20I batter and work on his game to evolve as a player. It was a refusal to even try to play modern-day T20I cricket. It was saddening to see him accept the role of a middle-order batter when he had clearly not improved his game, and most of all, he was taking the place of another batter who could have played the role better for Pakistan.
Why did you accept this role as a batter when you know your game is not there yet? It is costing your team and yourself dearly.
I recall you mentioning in interviews quite a few times that AB de Villiers is your idol in batting. It begs the question: should a student like yourself be stranded like this, not even trying to replicate your idol in batting? Would it demean you as a person or a player if you went to AB yourself and asked him to teach you?
You have mentioned many times how your childhood coaches know you and your batting best and how helpful they have been in your journey as a batter. No disrespect to any of these coaches, but do you believe they can make you evolve as a batter? Can they take you further than they themselves have ever gone?
Or would it not be better to learn the art of modern-day batting from modern-day greats like AB de Villiers, or someone great like himself?
I fear your approach, attitude, and fear regarding batting have not only affected your T20I batting but also your other, indeed stronger, formats.
Would it not be better to decide for yourself whether you want to become an evolved modern-day T20I batter or not, rather than trying to linger on and not make a decision either way?
Joe Root and Kane Williamson chose to opt out of the T20I format. Why? Are they inferior batters? No. But they simply made their decision to become great in the other two formats.
Steve Smith evolved his T20I batting because he wants to win a gold medal at the Olympics for Australia and himself. Did you know he was inferior to you as a T20 batter in your 2020-21 peak years? How has he evolved his batting? He made the intent to do so. He accepted his inferiority as a T20I batter first before he could work on his power game.
Has Babar accepted his inferiority as a modern-day batter? Or will Babar still let the ego of the past Babar get in the way? In order to learn, you have to be willing to learn, to accept that you don't know any better.
These are questions that you don't need to answer anyone but ask yourself, Babar, and I hope that you do get to reflect on yourself as a batter. Pakistani fans will always be looking for a batter who can show them modern-day batting. Do you want to be one?
Kind Regards,
RidiculousMan (Formar Babar Fan)
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Respected Cricketer Babar Azam,
In a country of so many fast bowlers, it was rare to see a batter like Babar come in during the last decade and show promise in all three formats, particularly after the bleak days following the 2010 incident.
I remember how impressive Babar was in his home debut series, slowly progressing in the following years and in the CT17 under the watchful eye of Mickey and seniors like Hafeez and Malik. I remember watching him score record consecutive centuries against the West Indies.
He played a great innings in the 2019 World Cup vs New Zealand, and the world suddenly expected him to become something greater than just the young Babar. Someone whose name would resonate not only among Pakistan cricket fans but for every cricket fan across time and location.
I enjoyed watching him bat in 2020 and 2021. In particular, I remember Babar playing that smooth knock with Rizwan against India, handing Pakistan their first and only T20 World Cup victory. The whole nation was overjoyed, and for the time being, we thought we had a batter from Pakistan in the 2020s who could match the class, elegance, and consistency of any batter in the world.
I also remember his county stints during that period: his 100 for Somerset and his 100 against South Africa at Centurion in a big chase of 200, where he played, in my view, one of the best shots when he opened the face of the bat to a pitch-perfect yorker from Magala towards fine third man for a four. I'm talking about the time when Babar was showing his best batting in T20I cricket.
There was a feeling among fans that Babar might be the man. Maybe he is the batter who will become a legend in history, as he was doing with his performances and process.
Though that changed in the following year, and I saw Babar struggle to find consistent form across formats, particularly in T20Is. Of course, for a long period, Babar struggled to make a 100. But that was the least worrying aspect for me in his batting.
Somewhere between the 2023 World Cup and the 2024 T20 World Cup, amidst all the background chaos in the PCB, it felt like something was not right. Babar was not progressing as he should; in fact, he started to fall back. There were a lot of questions around his strike rate in the shortest format. He was seen practicing big hits, perhaps trying to evolve as a T20I batter. He was also rested for a few tours between then and now.
What these events aspired to become in the end made me, for the first time ever, lose hope in Babar as a batter. Not because he was struggling with the bat, but because it felt like he stopped learning. He refused to sacrifice his position as a batter for the greater good of the team. I can understand how it must have felt to be on top of the world and then suddenly be asked to make room for new youngsters and take more responsibility as a batter. It can be scary.
I was particularly disappointed and annoyed as a cricket fan to see Babar's apparent inability to accept his flaws as a T20I batter and work on his game to evolve as a player. It was a refusal to even try to play modern-day T20I cricket. It was saddening to see him accept the role of a middle-order batter when he had clearly not improved his game, and most of all, he was taking the place of another batter who could have played the role better for Pakistan.
Why did you accept this role as a batter when you know your game is not there yet? It is costing your team and yourself dearly.
I recall you mentioning in interviews quite a few times that AB de Villiers is your idol in batting. It begs the question: should a student like yourself be stranded like this, not even trying to replicate your idol in batting? Would it demean you as a person or a player if you went to AB yourself and asked him to teach you?
You have mentioned many times how your childhood coaches know you and your batting best and how helpful they have been in your journey as a batter. No disrespect to any of these coaches, but do you believe they can make you evolve as a batter? Can they take you further than they themselves have ever gone?
Or would it not be better to learn the art of modern-day batting from modern-day greats like AB de Villiers, or someone great like himself?
I fear your approach, attitude, and fear regarding batting have not only affected your T20I batting but also your other, indeed stronger, formats.
Would it not be better to decide for yourself whether you want to become an evolved modern-day T20I batter or not, rather than trying to linger on and not make a decision either way?
Joe Root and Kane Williamson chose to opt out of the T20I format. Why? Are they inferior batters? No. But they simply made their decision to become great in the other two formats.
Steve Smith evolved his T20I batting because he wants to win a gold medal at the Olympics for Australia and himself. Did you know he was inferior to you as a T20 batter in your 2020-21 peak years? How has he evolved his batting? He made the intent to do so. He accepted his inferiority as a T20I batter first before he could work on his power game.
Has Babar accepted his inferiority as a modern-day batter? Or will Babar still let the ego of the past Babar get in the way? In order to learn, you have to be willing to learn, to accept that you don't know any better.
These are questions that you don't need to answer anyone but ask yourself, Babar, and I hope that you do get to reflect on yourself as a batter. Pakistani fans will always be looking for a batter who can show them modern-day batting. Do you want to be one?
Kind Regards,
RidiculousMan (Formar Babar Fan)
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