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Should Babar Azam Retire from T20Is?

mosh101

mosh101

Test Debutant
Joined
Sep 4, 2012
Runs
14,381
Probably a unpopular thread but cut me some slack. Now this is NOT a knee jerk reaction thread post babar's terrible Asia cup form.

I simply don't think Babar is a good enough T20 batsman. He just doesn't look a natural player in this format and seems to just play some horrible shots that he normally wouldn't in test match or ODI's. Again key word being "Natural".

Personally I would have him leave this format and concentrate on ODI's and Test cricket where he plays his natural game.

Your thoughts?
 
I’ve said it before he should drop himself down to number 4 and play the anchor against spin during the middle overs the teams need aggressive batsmen in the top 3.
 
He is the biggest statpader in this format.

Should never be compared with Jos Buttler, Virat Kohli( when he is in form), David Warner, De Kock, SKY and many more.
 
Silly thread.

Clearly, he is out of form atm.

However, he definitely needs to let go of captaincy.
 
No, there is no need for him to retire. Pakistan fans need to stop hyping him more than he deserves. He is the biggest stat padder in this format. Players like Babar, Malan, and Rizwan are good only for the ranking stuff. Most of the time they will hurt their team ( I am saying about T20Is).
 
No need to retire from T20 as there's little else cricket that Pakistan play all year. He needs to drop down the order. We need at least one pinch hitter to open in order to use the power play. That's where we lost today and its also the reason why the middle order comes under pressure. Rizwan, by default wicketkeeper has to play, so can keep opening. The other opening slot needs to go to someone who can get a quick 20 or 30 off 3 overs.
 
No but I think he should lose captaincy after the World T20.

I don't think he is a good T20 captain.
 
He's out of form currently which is new to him, with that being said, I would stick him at No.4.
 
iRfaN_LA said:
Joke thread. He needs to play 1 down
Click to expand...

Again, will he though?

2 reasons I dont see him going down the order:

1) He is captain

2) His ego

I think its pretty obvious he's no good at that opening spot and yet he's hogged it.

He's not moving down whether you like it or not.
 
Mamoon said:
No, but his fans should retire from overhyping and comparing him to legends like Kohli when he is not fit to tie his shoelaces.
Click to expand...

Harris Rauf the rock thrower

Wonder who said that?
 
mosh101 said:
Again, will he though?

2 reasons I dont see him going down the order:

1) He is captain

2) His ego

I think its pretty obvious he's no good at that opening spot and yet he's hogged it.

He's not moving down whether you like it or not.
Click to expand...

That’s the problem. He’s just too stubborn. Anyone can see the problem and find the solution but in the absence of reputable coach and Babar basically having free reign due to his brilliant performances with the bat before this series, he’s done what he’s wanted.

But the fact is - he remains one of the best batsmen in the world but is not a good captain.
 
Babar shouldn't retire from T20s but should come in at #3 for the sake of bolstering the middle order.
 
He shouldn't retire.
Pakistan cant afford both Babar and Rizwan at the top, one of them has to move below order
 
If Babar moves to 3, he will probably lose motivation to play just like Fakhar did. Babar wants to be there from the start, score an easy 20-25 runs in Power player overs. Bat at a run a ball or 8 runs every 6 balls and get to his 50. It’s how he wants to play and captaincy gives him the power to do it.
 
Rana said:
If Babar moves to 3, he will probably lose motivation to play just like Fakhar did. Babar wants to be there from the start, score an easy 20-25 runs in Power player overs. Bat at a run a ball or 8 runs every 6 balls and get to his 50. It’s how he wants to play and captaincy gives him the power to do it.
Click to expand...

Thats your typical SC star batsmen, bigger they become easier the role they want to play. Indian batting has underperformed for decades due to this culture. We where briefly lucky to have Yuvi/Raina/Dhoni, but before and after them we have had only super stars with inflated stats while team choking when it matters.
 
Back again to this.

Poor captaincy and definitely not fit to Open.

Wont budge and bat 1 down either.
 
mosh101 said:
Probably a unpopular thread but cut me some slack. Now this is NOT a knee jerk reaction thread post babar's terrible Asia cup form.

I simply don't think Babar is a good enough T20 batsman. He just doesn't look a natural player in this format and seems to just play some horrible shots that he normally wouldn't in test match or ODI's. Again key word being "Natural".

Personally I would have him leave this format and concentrate on ODI's and Test cricket where he plays his natural game.

Your thoughts?
Click to expand...

He shouldnt because we hardly play ODIs and n average play 7-8 tests every year
 
Absolutely not. But Pakistan need to find players who can play around his tuk tuk. Also, it might be a good idea to reassess his "away" credentials. He may not be the same batsman outside Asia.
 
With such a poor middle order, it would be madness to lose a player of Babar's calibre to hold it together. It should have happened before this world cup. However, will he want to, agree to? Who knows. But if he cares about team goals he should accept this challenge which will actually provide more impact to the team than all the stats padding he's been doing up to now.
 
Things are really bad when even Wasim Akram of all people is now coming out in public against you.

Wasim revealed that in Karachi Kings when they lost 9 matches out of ten, he had politely suggested to Babar to come down to number 3 and to allow Sharjeel and Salt to open instead. Babar refused point blank and as a result Sharjeel who was the more natural opener had to drop down to number 3.

Waqar then butted in saying this is the difference between a captain and a leader and the team respects a captain who is willing to make personal sacrifices for the team and is leading by example.

Knives are coming out for Babar now.
 
Savak said:
Things are really bad when even Wasim Akram of all people is now coming out in public against you.

Wasim revealed that in Karachi Kings when they lost 9 matches out of ten, he had politely suggested to Babar to come down to number 3 and to allow Sharjeel and Salt to open instead. Babar refused point blank and as a result Sharjeel who was the more natural opener had to drop down to number 3.

Waqar then butted in saying this is the difference between a captain and a leader and the team respects a captain who is willing to make personal sacrifices for the team and is leading by example.

Knives are coming out for Babar now.
Click to expand...

This sums up Babar. I still think Babar is a great batsman but he's just not fit to open and is just not his natural self in this format.
 
He should definitely retire. He has been playing the format since 2016 along with numerous domestic T20's but haven't improved his game 1 bit infact I'd say he has regressed massively in the format. Earlier he was very good in the PP where he normally used to bat around S/R of 140-150 but now he's just pathetic & useless always starts of his inns with a S/R of less than 100.

Even if he doesn't retire we should dump him he can play his useless innings for Karachi Kings meanwhile we should try Abdullah Shafique as an opener in T20I's his season with Qalandars showed that he has much better power game & hunger as compared to this fraud.
 
Savak said:
Things are really bad when even Wasim Akram of all people is now coming out in public against you.

Wasim revealed that in Karachi Kings when they lost 9 matches out of ten, he had politely suggested to Babar to come down to number 3 and to allow Sharjeel and Salt to open instead. Babar refused point blank and as a result Sharjeel who was the more natural opener had to drop down to number 3.

Waqar then butted in saying this is the difference between a captain and a leader and the team respects a captain who is willing to make personal sacrifices for the team and is leading by example.

Knives are coming out for Babar now.
Click to expand...

Epitome of selfishness. Just a gutless, visionless leader who watches out for his own back first before the team.

We need a tough, hard-nosed foreign coach who takes to task these senior players content on staying in comfort zones.
 
When england and australia can sideline Root and Smith respectively from t20 why cant Babar be asked to concentrate on ODI and Tests. His style of batting is just not suitable for t20. What separates Kohli from Babar and rest of the Fab 4 is that he has a 5th gear unlike the other 4.

This loss to ZIM can be a watershed moment for Pak similar to the exit of ENG from 2015 ODI CWC. Pakistan can overhaul its LOI setup and introduce players who play aggressively as per the modern requirements of the game.
 
Last edited:
ex-q-zit said:
When england and australia can sideline Root and Smith respectively from t20 why cant Babar be asked to concentrate on ODI and Tests. His style of batting is just not suitable for t20. What separates Kohli from Babar and rest of the Fab 4 is that he has a 5th gear unlike the other 4.

This loss to ZIM can be a watershed moment for Pak similar to their exit from 2015 ODI CWC. Pakistan can overhaul its LOI setup and introduce players who play aggressively as per the modern requirements of the game.
Click to expand...

Babar needs to develop that 5th gear for ODI cricket and certain situations in test cricket as well.
 
Savak said:
Babar needs to develop that 5th gear for ODI cricket and certain situations in test cricket as well.
Click to expand...

Lot of questions were raised about Smith's omission after Kohli's innings. There is this paid article which i cut and pasted.

excerpts from the article...

"After Kohli’s innings there were calls to recall Steve Smith because like Kohli, he has the class and skills to adjust to the tempo required and isn’t simply consumed with hitting a ball from Perth to Fremantle.

It sounds good in theory except Smith in white ball cricket is not Kohli. Smith has four gears. Kohli has five or six."

http://www.pakpassion.net/ppforum/s...CC-T20-World-Cup-2022&p=11627769#post11627769
 
Savak said:
Babar needs to develop that 5th gear for ODI cricket and certain situations in test cricket as well.
Click to expand...

Babar doesn't even have a 4th gear & he hasn't developed it even after playing 8 years on international cricket. He will not develop it now he will remain the player he is & his deluded fans will applaud his record in stupid meaningless bilateral & they will keep fawning over his cover drives.
 
Hilarious thread Hes our best all round batter Its not like theres loads of quality on the bench that we can do without someone like babar
 
He's a good batsman but I fear he's going the Ahmed Shehzad way. Selfish knocks always lead to losing the ability to play knocks in the first place and I fear we are seeing that with Babar.
If he starts playing for the team again then we might see him come back up to where he once was.
 
ex-q-zit said:
When england and australia can sideline Root and Smith respectively from t20 why cant Babar be asked to concentrate on ODI and Tests. His style of batting is just not suitable for t20. What separates Kohli from Babar and rest of the Fab 4 is that he has a 5th gear unlike the other 4.

This loss to ZIM can be a watershed moment for Pak similar to their exit from 2015 ODI CWC. Pakistan can overhaul its LOI setup and introduce players who play aggressively as per the modern requirements of the game.
Click to expand...

Because England and Australia have tremendous batting depth whereas Pakistan don't have any batsmen on the bench that seem worthy contenders to Babar.
We ain't no fab 3 + NZ type side. We are a mid-rank team. For our standards Babar is still a great T20 player.
 
Not retirement. He needs a break. Post-pandemic Kohli's form went bonkers. Eventually, he got a lengthy break. That has really helped him apparently. His game against spin has improved. High time Babar starts missing these Netherlands, Zimbabwe, and Ireland series.
 
jnaveen1980 said:
Not retirement. He needs a break. Post-pandemic Kohli's form went bonkers. Eventually, he got a lengthy break. That has really helped him apparently. His game against spin has improved. High time Babar starts missing these Netherlands, Zimbabwe, and Ireland series.
Click to expand...

But that's not the Pakistan way. Pakistan play their main team against everyone from Australia to Zimbabwe and every alphabet in between.
 
jnaveen1980 said:
Not retirement. He needs a break. Post-pandemic Kohli's form went bonkers. Eventually, he got a lengthy break. That has really helped him apparently. His game against spin has improved. High time Babar starts missing these Netherlands, Zimbabwe, and Ireland series.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately that would mean denying Babar a cheap stat-boosting fifty and the chance for embarrassing fangirls like Urooj Mumtaz to exclaim "The King Is Back !" on commentary.
 
PP is the toughest phase to bat nowadays and it is particularly hard in this world Cup. What other options do Pakistan have for opening?
 
Markhor said:
Unfortunately that would mean denying Babar a cheap stat-boosting fifty and the chance for embarrassing fangirls like Urooj Mumtaz to exclaim "The King Is Back !" on commentary.
Click to expand...

Last 5 years

Pakistan 91 matches Babar 81
India 102 matches Kohli 59
New zealand 80 matches WIlliamson 44
Australia 77 matches Warner 32
England 70 matches Buttler 42
 
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