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'I Got Lot of Love from India': Babar Azam Praises Indian Fans' Support For Pakistan

image-lotp17u2Babar during training session [AP Photo]

In the recent pre-match conference ahead of their World Cup 2023 clash vs England, Pakistan captain Babar Azam discussed the overwhelming support and affection received from Indian fans during his side’s first tour to India since the 2016 T20 World Cup.

Babar Azam appreciates love and support from Indian fans

Despite starting their World Cup journey with initial successes, Pakistan's progress was hindered by a loss to India, placing them on the brink of tournament elimination.

Babar's personal performance and leadership have been under scrutiny due to his lacklustre form in the ongoing ICC event. He highlighted his commitment to team success over individual accolades, stating his approach to batting was always aligned with the team's needs, varying from slow to fast play based on the situation.

“To be honest – first I got a lot of love from India, a lot of support. Not only me, the entire team. Of course, I was not able to get a good finish. My goal was to get a good finish in the batting. I didn’t have a goal to score 50 or 100. The main thing was to make the win the team. The performance that helps the team, not my individual performance. I played slow, I played fast, depending on the situation. I play according to the situation and according to what my team need,” said Babar.




Addressing the challenges of adapting to Indian pitches, Babar noted that the team had initially lacked awareness but quickly adjusted during practice sessions. He pointed out the difficulties batters face during the middle overs when the ball gets older.

“We came here for the first time, we didn’t have the awareness of how to take it, but we adapted as soon as possible in practice, that we will have to face it like this. So, we faced this thing, we took it and planned accordingly that how do we bat here. Because as I said, in the middle and end you get runs. In the middle overs when the ball is old you struggle a bit – as a batsman.” added the World No.2 ODI batter.

With a total of 282 runs across 8 matches, including four half-centuries, Babar acknowledged his performance fell short of expectations. This dip in form resulted in him losing the ICC number 1 ranking in the ODI format to Indian opener, Shubman Gill.

Looking forward, the Pakistani skipper expressed a strong desire to end the campaign with a commendable performance against England, admitting his high expectations for himself and his resolution to conclude on a positive note.

“That’s it, I wanted to give a good performance here, I had high expectations but I couldn’t perform as per expectations. I accept that. But the finish, as you said, I try to have a good finish,” concluded the 29-year-old.