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Babar Azam's weakness exploited as Maharaj triggers old concerns in 2nd Test vs South Africa

Anurag Dasgupta

Babar Azam flops [Source: AFP Photo] Babar Azam flops [Source: AFP Photo]

Another Test match and Babar Azam found the same old ways to get dismissed as South African spinner, Keshav Maharaj spun his magic and dismissed the Pakistan batter for a 22-ball 16 in the second Test match. The batter looked in ominous touch before disaster struck and the left-arm spinner once again became Babar’s biggest nemesis.

Just like the first Test match, the stage was set for a Babar masterclass as he came into bat when the platform was set, but Maharaj had some other plans as the Proteas spinner trapped Babar in his plan.

Babar gets trapped in same old problem vs South Africa

When Babar came to bat, the Proteas skipper brought in Keshav Maharaj, and the plan worked as the batter got dismissed after a decent start. He came in around the wicket and bowled an off-break delivery on the stumps. The Pakistan star prodded forward for a block, as he played it with hard hands.

The ball lobbed up and the fielder at silly point dived to his right to grab a brilliant catch as the Pakistan star failed to deliver for the second successive game. The South African side knew about Babar Azam’s weakness against spinners as they persisted with Maharaj and the spinner did the job to perfection.

Why Babar struggles against spinners

For starters, he has a timid approach against the spinners as he stays on the back-foot and hardly uses his feet against them. This has led to his downfall in Test cricket as the spinners tend to push him on the backfoot.

Moreover, Maharaj has dominated him in Test cricket and Babar is yet to find a solution against him. In Tests, the Pakistan batter has scored 69 runs against Maharaj; however, the average is only 17.2 as the Proteas spinner has dominated the proceedings and has dismissed him four times.