'It's Captain's Job To..'- Shahid Afridi Slams Babar Azam's Leadership

Aakash Saini

image-lo5v7vciBabar Azam leads team off the field after World Cup 2023 defeat to AFG (x.com)

Shahid Afridi has lashed out at Pakistan skipper Babar Azam after the ‘Men in Green’ slumped to an eight-wicket larruping at the hands of Afghanistan at the 2023 World Cup. A former Pakistan captain himself, Afridi criticized the cricketer for not applying enough pressure on Afghanistan team during their tense run-chase in Chennai.

The legendary all-rounder questioned Babar’s field placements in the match, and urged him to learn the art of applying pressure on opponents from Australia.

Shahid Afridi flays Babar Azam for defeat to AFG

Turning up against Afghanistan on October 23 in their must-win World Cup 2023 game, the Pakistani batting line-up conjured 282 runs upfront off the back of half-centuries from Babar Azam and opener Abdullah Shafique.

Defending a competitive total on a turning Chennai surface, Pakistan’s bowling attack failed to contain Afghanistan’s batting juggernaut as both their openers slapped sparkling fifty-plus scores in their 130-run opening stand. 

Apart from Pakistan’s new-ball bowlers Hasan Ali and Shaheen Afridi, none of the others managed to claim a wicket as Rahmat Shah and Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi guided their side past the finishing line with an over and eight wickets to spare.

Following Pakistan’s crushing defeat, former captain Shahid Afridi rained down on current skipper Babar Azam for his lackluster field placements throughout the match. While speaking with the local media, he said:

“It is the captain's job to apply pressure, a pacer is bowling and there is no slip? Four are required on 12 balls and you've taken backward point? Apply pressure. What do the Australians do? They take one to two wickets and then put all of their players in the circle to apply pressure, like they did against Pakistan.”

Pakistan launched their World Cup 2023 campaign with confident wins against Netherlands and Sri Lanka in Hyderabad. However, their high-flying run was disrupted by arch-rivals India in Ahmedabad and by Australia in Bengaluru before a shock defeat to Afghanistan further dented their chances of a top four finish.

Babar Azam and co. will now face a rampaging South African unit on October 27.