Kamran Akmal has claimed that Babar Azam did not deserve to be made the captain in 2019 despite outstanding form with the bat, however, PCB should now stick with him instead of disrupting the setup.
Sharing his thoughts about Babar Azam’s captaincy after Pakistan lost to Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup final, Kamran Akmal told that he had advised Babar not to take up the role yet as he was in supreme form with the bat.
The former cricketer said, “When I got to know that he was being appointed as the captain, I said to him, ‘I don’t think you should become the skipper now. You should perform for the next two-three years in a big way….currently, the batting lineup is dependent on you. If you score 35-40 hundreds in this time, then you’ll be able to enjoy as well as manage the team as a captain. As soon as Sarfaraz leaves, the responsibility will definitely come to you. But now is not the right time.’ I had said this to him back then but it was his own decision.”
While he strongly opposed the idea of changing the captain, Kamran Akmal did criticize Babar Azam for poor captaincy in the Asia Cup final.
He said, “Now he has matured as a captain. It would be a blunder if they replace him now. But it should be better than the way he’s captained in the Asia Cup final. Before that, his captaincy was superb. He utilized his bowlers very well. He utilized Nawaz very well. But when your form isn’t good, you can adjust yourself in the lineup for the team.”
Kamran Akmal also suggested a shuffle in the top order to set the batting approach right. The former cricketer supported Fakhar Zaman’s promotion to the opening slot in place of either Rizwan or Babar.
