More dot balls than Babar Azam: Why Sahibzada's T20I tempo should pave way for his exclusion

End of the road for Sahibzada Farhan? [Source: AFP Photo]

Pakistan won the second T20I against South Africa to level the series, but despite an emphatic win, the Men in Green have plenty of problems to sort out. Their playing combination still looks baffling, but the biggest concern is the way their top-order batter, Sahibzada Farhan plays at the top and inside the powerplay.

He came into the team with a big reputation as a strong hitter of the ball, but 29 matches later, he has yet to fully justify his place in the side and the numbers actually tell a sorry state of affairs.

Sahibzada Farhan's sorry state of affairs in T20Is

(Farhan in T20Is)

• For someone who had the reputation of being an explosive, hard-hitting batter, Sahibzada Farhan is yet to live up to that hype. He has an average of 22 and a strike rate of just 124.66 after playing in 29 matches. Interestingly, most of the matches he has played on the flat tracks of Pakistan, and yet, the results were hard to come by.
• For an opener who did extremely well in the domestic league and the PSL, he is yet to fully justify the way he plays at the international level and his play style is actually hampering Pakistan cricket.
• Moreover, the biggest concern has been his dot-ball percentage, which is the highest amongst all the current players in the squad.

Pakistan players with highest dot-ball percentage

• Of all the current players, Sahibzada wastes most of his deliveries as he has the highest dot-ball percentage at 48.7. The next worst is his opening partner, Saim Ayub, with a dot ball percentage of 43.5. 
• Surprisingly, the batter who was heavily criticised for his T20I gameplay, Babar Azam, has the least dot-ball percentage (31.6). He doesn’t have the power-game for this format, but Babar makes sure that the scoreboard is ticking as he takes the singles and doubles and keeps the dot-ball percentage low.
• Interestingly, Sahibzada Farhan scores boundary after every 6.09 balls, which is the fifth worst in Pakistan cricket at the moment.

Should Pakistan drop Sahibzada for 3rd T20I Vs SA?

• Pakistan can go two ways with Sahibzada Farhan - either they can drop him for the next game and promote Babar Azam at the top, or they can persist with him, at-least for the remainder of the South Africa series.
• Realistically, Pakistan should drop him from the squad, as the batter is yet to play the designated role assigned to him. In such a scenario, they can promote Babar, as the star batter loves to play at the top, and he can keep the scoreboard ticking with singles and doubles.
• Moreover, Babar’s best days have been at the top as he relishes opening the batting and has scored truckloads of runs at the position. Playing him at number 3 doesn’t make much sense.

Final verdict

Sahibzada Farhan was set to be a revolutionary batter for Pakistan, but the batter has so far failed to deliver the goods. He has the highest dot-ball percentage amongst all the batters, and perhaps time has come for the team to promote Babar at the top.

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