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Why Babar Azam Is Not Playing In Pakistan's Champions Cup 2024 Playoffs?

Babar Azam will no longer take part in Champions Cup 2024 (@babarazam258)Babar Azam will no longer take part in Champions Cup 2024 (@babarazam258)

Babar Azam, the star Pakistan batter and current white-ball captain, will no longer take part in the Champions One-Day Cup. He, along with other players selected in the Pakistan squad for the first England Test, has been withdrawn from the tournament. Along with Babar, the likes of Abrar Ahmed and Shan Masood, who were part of the Stallions squad, have also been withdrawn from the tournament.

Lions, the opponents of Stallions in the Eliminator 1 clash, will also miss the services of Aamir Jamal and Abduallah Shafique due to their selection in the Pakistan squad, while Shaheen Afridi was already ruled out due to an elbow injury.

The decision to withdraw the players selected for the England Test was based on a recommendation made by head coach Jason Gillespie. The squad is slated to assemble on September 30th, and training will start in October ahead of the first Test on October 7.

Pressure On Pakistan After Loss Against Bangladesh

The decision to rest the players selected for the first England Test speaks a lot about the importance of the upcoming England Test series. Pakistan were recently whitewashed by Bangladesh and it has brought lot of criticism from all corners, and a good performance seems quite essential for the current captain Shan Masood who is likely to face the axe if Pakistan come up with another dismal performance.

However, despite the torrid performance against Bangladesh, there are not wholesale changes, and PCB would be hoping that their star players like Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, Shan Masood deliver against England.

Pakistan's Squad For 1st Test Vs England

Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wicket-keeper), and Shaheen Shah Afridi