Is it right to have Babar Azam as the captain for both the ODI and T20I teams?

[Abdullah719]

According to rumours, Babar Azam will be appointed the ODI captain in due time. He has already taken over in T20Is.

A good decision? He's still just 25 years old and the pressure on him will only increase.

 

[Hyperion66]

Who else you got? At the very least Babar can inspire the team with his own performance.

 

[Mamoon]

Yes, he is the only option. He should also be the Test captain and it is only a matter of time, but PCB will first wait for the mediocrity that is Azhar to completely plunge to the deepest pits of failure before pulling the plug on his career.

 

[Hasan123]

Yes he is the best opinion. Sarfraz should have been booted out months ago.

 

[Titan24]

He is the right option and he totally deserves it. His work ethics, professionalism and temperament is second to none. He is a pretty good learner and there is no doubt he will give his best to this role as well as he has given to his batting and career. He values things and doesnt take them for granted.

 

[OhTwadi]

No one else that is an option really so we got to go with what we have.

 

[Justcrazy]

He should not be captain , let him flourish in batting without pressure of captaincy.

 

[NauV]

Honestly, I don't see a captain in him from any angle . . As unfortunate as it is, it seems in Pakistan the only criterion to be a captain is to be a good performer (or even worse, to have a permanent spot in the team) . .

Realistically, I look around and I see no one who can become captain and that is really really sad and speaks volume of how we develop our cricketers, cricket team, etc. etc.

Also realistically and my prediction, Babar will never be a great captain and hence will be subjected to the ruthlessness of fans and media and he will not be able to cope . . either captaincy will fall apart or his performance or both . .

Just from the way that he talks about the game in press conferences, off field . . I don't see him being a good tactician at all . . doesn't come across as a shrewd strategist either . . what's left is people management . . we will wait and see about that . .

Regardless! It's sad we have no other option . . but with Misbah at the helm and Babar leading on the field . . I foresee him being in the firing line not just because Pakistan will lose more than they will win .. but also because of the blunders he will invariably make on the field (or come across as someone who is not in control) . .

I fear for our best batting talent and performer in the last 2 decades!

 

[Thunderbolt14]

I would like to see Babar only captain one format for now. And I would prefer for that format to be ODIs. This will give Babar more time to learn, and as there is no major ODI tournament coming up, will save Babar from criticism and prepare him as captain for 2023.

For T20s, I would actually have Imad Wasim. He is a shrewd tactician, which we have seen from how he captains KK as well as how he led Northern to win the National T20 Cup 2019. He was giving instructions to Haris Rauf throughout and especially in the do or die semi-final against KPK.

Match had basically already been lost, with KPK at 141/4 chasing 148. They need 8 runs off the last over to win with 6 wickets in hand. And 7 to tie. Imad gives instructions to Rauf on every ball, and removes the pressure from him (good man management) and before every single ball of this last over you can see him talking to Rauf about what to deliver next.

Rauf, being the beauty he is, produces a flurry of beautiful deliveries:
W 2wd W W 0 W 1

I give a good portion of this credit to Imad and the way he captained in a situation where all hope had been lost.

If Karachi Kings wins this PSL, and it very well might, Imad should shoot up into contention for captaincy. If picked, it would ease Babar’s pressure a lot.

At the very least, my ideal situation would be to appoint Imad as vice captain. This way, if Imad doesn’t perform then there is no pressure on him. And Babar can lead from the front which he is very good at, while he has his bases covered in terms of tactics and strategy with Imad playing a strong supporting role.

PCB would miss a trick by not appointing Imad as a vice captain before this WC. Babar and the team would both vastly benefit from it.

 

[Barragan]

He isn't captaincy material, hence Imad was picked over him by KK.

He may develop into a great captain in the future, but it is too early for him to even be given the T20I captaincy.

However, Pak have no other guaranteed starters, so pcb are hoping he develops rapidly as a captain.

 

[Plumb]

I don't think he is the best choice... After a long time we have a solid batsmen who we can depend 8-10 times. I am afraid given this responsibility may affect his batting.

Even if it doesn't affect I still want him to concentrate his main job to pile up runs with a clear head.

 

[AFM]

I don’t know why people think he can’t be a good captain. His team won the FC tournament this year. Has been captain of A teams. Is the only established and world class player in the team in all formats.

 

[Thunderbolt14]

I don’t know why people think he can’t be a good captain. His team won the FC tournament this year. Has been captain of A teams. Is the only established and world class player in the team in all formats.

He didn’t captain that team in most of its matches.

I agree with you though, about being the only established player; he can grow and become a good captain.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Better to fast-track the process then wait for someone mediocre like Sarfraz to fill the slot temporarily.

Babar was always going to be captain. It was the natural progression as it is for all gun batsmen because their place in the side is almost always guaranteed. The only question was when? Personally I think it should have been 2 years down the line but considering this is the Pakistan team with a vacuum of leadership figures, it's better to make him captain now so he can get accustomed to the added responsibility. Only demerit is that this is essentially baptism by fire. He will have to learn captaincy on-the-job as there is no mentor who can offer him constructive advice about captaincy, unless you want to count Misbah.

 

[ZamanFan]

One has to look at the people who have chosen Azam.
And the people who chose him have chosen failure like Azhar Ali as Test captain.
Have been reiterating again and again there is a certain PCB mafia operating since 2007 (Inzamam era) who don't care if Pakistan win or loses or is at the bottom of the ranks. They just want certain cricketers in the national team and special interests people running the board.

Babar Azam's reason one is he being an Akmal (cousin of Kamran,U.Akmal), so he has been able to survive due to connections even the bad awful run in his test career where his average was around 23-25 at one time,
second he being really young which means that 2003 excuse of 'don't expect us to win we are rebuilding so please give us time'.
Third he is not a natural captain. Have seen his captaincy as well as his ascent when he first featured in Pakistan U 19 team. Having a young person enables the coaches moreof a role. The person running the team would be the team management and coaches (Waqar, Misbah).

Fans only concern would be that Azam is the only player who performs but he has a problem performing against top sides. One has seen during ASia Cup 2018 and World Cup 2019 how he became Kuldeep Yadav's bunny getting bowled with huge gap between bat and pad. His miserable tour against New Zealand in 2018. Depending on him has'nt worked every time against top 5 teams.

The most solid reason to back him is that Misbah and Waqar would be incharge most of the time while being just a frontman on the field, this is a recipe for disaster as a losing and coach backed captain only foster revolts and underperformances by 10 other team members who are vying to get captaincy.

Sarfaraz was a natural captain who had been captaining since U 19 and at club levels. REplacing him with a young but weak captain dictated by coaches is not a brilliant idea.

 

[yasir]

Yes, he is the only option. He should also be the Test captain and it is only a matter of time, but PCB will first wait for the mediocrity that is Azhar to completely plunge to the deepest pits of failure before pulling the plug on his career.

This is true though,

 

[Rana]

IMO Pakistan made a blunder here and could have invested in Imam ul Haq as the ODI captain. He’s the only guy that we can afford to bat selfishly as an anchor whilst others bat freely around him.

Imam is a decent, well educated guy as well, more importantly he has a bit of fire in his belly and is looking to fight for his country. Just hope it does not hinder the free flowing approach of Babar. This guy is an artist with the bat in hand.

 

[CricketDon]

He’ll yeah. Hopefully like kohli his fitness rubs of on his team mates. Alongside his work ethic.

However in order for the culture to change in the team. We need to get rid of seniors like malik and hafeez. They are parasites and would play politics

 

[Mujtaba2900]

One has to look at the people who have chosen Azam.
And the people who chose him have chosen failure like Azhar Ali as Test captain.
Have been reiterating again and again there is a certain PCB mafia operating since 2007 (Inzamam era) who don't care if Pakistan win or loses or is at the bottom of the ranks. They just want certain cricketers in the national team and special interests people running the board.

Babar Azam's reason one is he being an Akmal (cousin of Kamran,U.Akmal), so he has been able to survive due to connections even the bad awful run in his test career where his average was around 23-25 at one time,
second he being really young which means that 2003 excuse of 'don't expect us to win we are rebuilding so please give us time'.
Third he is not a natural captain. Have seen his captaincy as well as his ascent when he first featured in Pakistan U 19 team. Having a young person enables the coaches moreof a role. The person running the team would be the team management and coaches (Waqar, Misbah).

Fans only concern would be that Azam is the only player who performs but he has a problem performing against top sides. One has seen during ASia Cup 2018 and World Cup 2019 how he became Kuldeep Yadav's bunny getting bowled with huge gap between bat and pad. His miserable tour against New Zealand in 2018. Depending on him has'nt worked every time against top 5 teams.

The most solid reason to back him is that Misbah and Waqar would be incharge most of the time while being just a frontman on the field, this is a recipe for disaster as a losing and coach backed captain only foster revolts and underperformances by 10 other team members who are vying to get captaincy.

Sarfaraz was a natural captain who had been captaining since U 19 and at club levels. REplacing him with a young but weak captain dictated by coaches is not a brilliant idea.

Like seriously how conveniently you forgot his average of 60 against eng series his 63 66 against SA and ENG in WC his 101 and 96 against BN and NZ his 50 Avg against SA in SA
And all that at 90+ SR with no one Supporting him in this period FZ with horrible performance,Sarfraz ahmad and shoiab malik as your lower middle order ,hasan ali and shadab khan and amir declining form seriously u expect him to win u damn matches on his own by scoring 300 and Then talking 10 wickets thats what u want
Shadab khan had gotten out Williamson 4-5 times so he shadab khan bunny?
Babar got peech in WC against india And u forgot he was on 48
At least now u cant bring this argument that he can't perform against good oppositions or good bowling attacks he Faced every bowler on earth in Last 1.5 and his Avg is 60 at 92 SR what else do u want?
U mentioned WC In which in underperformed he scored 474 so what score he needed to perform at par ?

 

[RickyG]

Ive always had a soft spot for sarfraz but think Rizwan has earned his opportunity.

Sarfraz should focus on his batting, keeping and fitness and make a come back if an opportunity arises.

Definitely needed a new test captain. ODIs and T20s did not need a new captain necessarily but that decision has obviously been made.

Not sure if Babar can do it but let’s find out.

 

[aukhan]

Yes. He should be our captain. He is our best player.

What are the other alternatives? medciore Imad or Shandaar masood?

 

[BoomBoomCricket]

Babar left school aged 12. He is uneducated. He is illiterate. He can't speak English. Far from ideal for a national captain. He has limited experience of life outside the cricket field. This is also important. You want well rounded individuals holding a position of responsibility such as leadership roles.

But he is a world class performer with the bat in hand. He is a responsible, thinking and consistent batsman with the way he applies himself at the crease time after time. He'll be the type of captain that will lead from the front and lead by example to inspire the rest of the team as a model of consistency through the strength of his own batting performances rather than being a funky tactician or someone who is a decent orator.

He has plenty of captaincy experience with Pakistan U15, Pakistan U19, Pakistan "A" and Central Punjab more recently.

Babar would be a fine choice to lead Pakistan in the ICC ODI World Cup Super League 2020-2022 and then the 2023 World Cup. He has a century in the ICC U19 World Cup in 2010 aged 15. He has a World Cup 100 in a must win game against a good New Zealand attack on a tricky surface and it was a pleasure to be at Edgbaston that Wednesday to see him get three figures, something Inzamam or Yousuf never achieved in a World Cup event. He knows what it takes to deliver as the premier batsman in the side in a high profile competition.

However, he has bad taste in selecting players. Shoaib Malik averaged under 20 in five of the last six world tournaments he's played for Pakistan and he is putting his faith in him looking ahead to Australia and the Twenty20 World Cup later this year on the vague basis of his experience and seniority. That has disappointed me. According to reports he had a major say in picking Hafeez and Malik for the recently concluded T20I series against Bangladesh in Lahore. This shows a distinct lack of vision in building a team and the type of players he wants to invest in. It is just going around in circles with older players who have continuously let Pakistan down on the world stage, especially in England most recently.

 

[Titan24]

Babar left school aged 12. He is uneducated. He is illiterate. He can't speak English. Far from ideal for a national captain. He has limited experience of life outside the cricket field. This is also important. You want well rounded individuals holding a position of responsibility such as leadership roles.

Complete all round personalities can only be produced through a good school cricket system. There is some extreme talent we have missed on due to not having a system in place for boys/girls in educational institutions who want to play cricket higher level while continuing their studies atleast upto a certain level.

That being said Babar is the best choice for Pak at the moment.

 

[ahmadharis1]

It's weird, he's probably the best option for LOI captain but I never want him to be captain so he can focus solely on his batting

 

[GreenKhan]

It’s a tough one . Some players flourish under captaincy some struggle .

Babar has a very high profile now and rightly so. Opposition will be targeting him as the main wicket . If we don’t have other batsman supporting him and Babar realises that it’s Babar or Bust for Pakistan, then that additional pressure could affect his batting and captaincy .

 

[shamaan]

Good decision

 

[ZamanFan]

Like seriously how conveniently you forgot his average of 60 against eng series his 63 66 against SA and ENG in WC his 101 and 96 against BN and NZ his 50 Avg against SA in SA
And all that at 90+ SR with no one Supporting him in this period FZ with horrible performance,Sarfraz ahmad and shoiab malik as your lower middle order ,hasan ali and shadab khan and amir declining form seriously u expect him to win u damn matches on his own by scoring 300 and Then talking 10 wickets thats what u want
Shadab khan had gotten out Williamson 4-5 times so he shadab khan bunny?
Babar got peech in WC against india And u forgot he was on 48
At least now u cant bring this argument that he can't perform against good oppositions or good bowling attacks he Faced every bowler on earth in Last 1.5 and his Avg is 60 at 92 SR what else do u want?
U mentioned WC In which in underperformed he scored 474 so what score he needed to perform at par ?

Firstly calm down and stop ranting.

Now tell me what was Babar Azam's test average in 2017 and 18 before 2nd innings of Pak v Aus match in Abu Dhabi?
Zaman and Sarfaraz both saved that match when Azam and Shafiq got out
How did Babar do in the Champions Trophy 2017?
Minus Australia where he averaged more than 30 because of one tour what was his average against other top 5 countries?

Babar Azam has been given opportunities no other debutant player including Fawad Alam ever got. He was carried by the team and vociferously selected despite making low scores. His scoring near 90s with lot of balls consumed is still there. His weakness of edging th or 6th stump bowl to slips is still not rectified. And he is bein goverburdenes with captaincy and supposed to carry the team on his shoulders.


Now there is no Fakhar Zaman or Sarfaraz, and no Hafeez in the ODI format. I don't consider Malik able enough to be counted. He would have to carry the team and what I've seen of him his planted captaincy won't survive long.

 

[Mujtaba2900]

Firstly calm down and stop ranting.

Now tell me what was Babar Azam's test average in 2017 and 18 before 2nd innings of Pak v Aus match in Abu Dhabi?
Zaman and Sarfaraz both saved that match when Azam and Shafiq got out
How did Babar do in the Champions Trophy 2017?
Minus Australia where he averaged more than 30 because of one tour what was his average against other top 5 countries?

Babar Azam has been given opportunities no other debutant player including Fawad Alam ever got. He was carried by the team and vociferously selected despite making low scores. His scoring near 90s with lot of balls consumed is still there. His weakness of edging th or 6th stump bowl to slips is still not rectified. And he is bein goverburdenes with captaincy and supposed to carry the team on his shoulders.


Now there is no Fakhar Zaman or Sarfaraz, and no Hafeez in the ODI format. I don't consider Malik able enough to be counted. He would have to carry the team and what I've seen of him his planted captaincy won't survive long.

Wow just wow if you don't know then let me Illuminate You.
Babar And Rohit Sharma They both Plays on the Up and not like kohli who Instead of waiting for ball to come him gets close to the ball using foot movements
That's how babar plays and You cant change that that's the reason sharma was a flop in test cricket he just couldn't adjust his technique
But babar is Not only improving it he is getting consistent at it and This test Technique is going to help him survive difficult pitches on Loi.
And i totally Agree With You till Sep-Nov 2018 Babar Was Nothing he was just Soft Scorer On whom team Couldn't depend on
But if You Cant See his Progression in Last Year then I Can't Argue with You
And can You please check his Average against Top Oppositions Again including NZ against which he had a disaster first tour
On the side Note Check Average of Fab 4 against top opposition obviously leave kohli He is GOAT