'Virat Kohli failed, so what? You are leading Pakistan...': Babar Azam mercilessly slammed in hot-headed rant

Babar Azam of Pakistan plays a shot during the ICC Men's T20 Cricket World Cup West Indies & USA 2024

Pakistan were eliminated from the group stage of the T20 World Cup last week, following the losses to the United States and India. The side's survival in the edition depended on Ireland's win over the USA, but the weather gods spoiled Pakistan's chances with rain ensuring no play was possible in Lauderhill. With a solitary point, USA qualified for the Super Eight stage, as they continue on a splendid run in the tournament.

Pakistan ended their T20 World Cup run with a scratchy win over Ireland on Sunday, defeating the side by three wickets in a 107-run chase. It has been a low-scoring tournament, with the matches in Group A being particularly impacted due to sluggish pitches in the USA. The surface in New York gained notoriety for being too tilted in favour of bowlers; the highest run-chase at the venue was 111 by India, which provides a fair idea on how tricky the conditions were.

During a chat show, Pakistan's batter Ahmed Shehzad was asked on whether it would be fair to be overly-critical of the Pakistan side when the conditions were difficult for batting. Shehzad, however, insisted that the side has been performing below-par for many years, and not just in the ongoing edition.

“If you go back in time, you lost to Zimbabwe, then South Africa lost to Netherlands. Then you reached the final. We lost in Asia Cup to Sri Lanka. You look back at last three months... you lost to Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Ireland, now USA. You couldn't chase 120 against India. This isn't just about this World Cup,” Shehzad told GEO News.

“We get paid for it. If I dominate the team for 4-5 years, I won't have an excuse. You have to prepare yourself for every condition, that's why you are an international cricketer. You should know how to tackle conditions and win the match for your country.”

Need to execute

When the host pointed out that Virat Kohli has also been poor in the USA leg – Kohli has scored only 5 runs across three matches in the edition – Shehzad stated that in Babar Azam's case, there was more to it than just batting.

“It isn't important that you perform. You talked about Kohli. Okay, Babar also got out. So what? Where is the team effort? You've got to find the things in a method... conditions are for both teams. You need to execute things rightly, from captaincy to using bowlers, and lead the team to win. If you're not winning the matches, you will be blamed,” said Shehzad.

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