After Pakistan’s crushing defeat in the first Test against Bangladesh, many questioned the strength of the national team and the effectiveness of the domestic cricket system.
The entire team came under fire from fans and former players, but Babar Azam faced the most scrutiny for his underwhelming performance. Despite this, Pakistan’s former cricketer Ramiz Raja disapproves of Babar being singled out for criticism.
While talking to his YouTube channel, Babar Azam said, “It seems the entire nation does not have a problem with anything except the form of Babar Azam. Unfortunately, what happens is when you lose a match and you have not scored runs and if you are Babar Azam, then you become a headline – How did we lose? What did he do? What was his contribution? And then this is the era of social media. Anybody can criticize and ridicule anyone, this should be discouraged as much as possible.”
Ramiz advised Babar to stay away from social media and concentrate on his cricket if he wants to get back in form. He also emphasized the importance of giving his all in practice and on the field during matches.
“Cricket is in our blood but don’t know for how long if we continue to lose matches like this in Test cricket. Fan following increases with wins and fans identify themselves with success stories. Babar Azam has had a famous success story. There is no doubt that he has been a big player in all three formats,” he said.
“So what does he have to do? First, avoid social media. Second, stay in the moment. When you are not able to score runs, it becomes a mental game and you start second-guessing. So you start worrying and that worrisome look is evident on Babar’s face. He is trying hard, so frustration will be there. What’s important is how he is batting.”
“You lose your frame because you aren’t spending much time on the crease. If you are playing forward, commit fully, if on the back foot, then use the crease. Practice hook and pull shots a lot, because then you focus on the ball a lot,” he concluded.
