Former India batsman Sanjay Manjrekar criticized Pakistan stars Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan for their batting display in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2024.
The onus was on Pakistan’s captain and keeper-batsman to lead their team’s charge with the bat in the competition. However, they have not lived up to expectations and have faced harsh criticism for their cautious attitude with the bat so far. They opened the innings in the first two games before Saim Ayub replaced Babar Azam at the top of the order in the third game.
In the first match against the United States, Babar scored 44 runs off 43 balls, while Rizwan was out for 9 off 8 balls and Pakistan suffered a shock defeat. In the second game against India, Babar could only score 13 runs while Rizwan scored 31 runs in 44 balls. As neither Babar nor Rizwan failed to impress with the bat against India, Pakistan lost the game by six runs while chasing 120 runs.
In the third do-or-die game against Canada, their strike rate also did not improve much as both of them maintained a strike rate of 100. Rizwan scored 53 runs off the same number of balls, while Babar scored 33 runs, although Pakistan managed to win the crucial game.
Sanjay Manjrekar criticizes Babar and Rizwan:
Speaking on Star Sports, Sanjay Manjrekar criticized Babar and Rizwan for not showing any intent with the bat in the T20 World Cup and also praised the team management for demoting the captain to number three. The former cricketer-turned-commentator also opined that Babar and Rizwan cannot open together for Pakistan in the shortest format of the game.
“I’m glad they made a change in the batting order. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan can’t open together. Neither of them were keen to attack early, so they put someone else at the top. Left- The combination hand and forehand is not that bad, so some good things happen there,” Manjrekar said after Pakistan’s victory over Canada.
Manjrekar further said that batting remains a big concern for Pakistan before praising Mohammad Amir for his bowling display. He also backed the Men in Green to beat Ireland in their final group match. Manjrekar, however, made it clear that he is not very confident in Pakistan’s chances of performing well in the tournament even if they qualify for the Super 8.
“The batting is still a bit worrying. Mohammad Amir is gaining ground. So I see them being better than Ireland to win the game. But once they get into the Super Eight, it will be a different kind of problem.” test for them because they don’t look as good as some of the other teams that have come through,” Manjrekar added.