New Delhi, India

On Sunday (Oct 13), the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) didn't name Babar Azam in the squad for the second and third Tests between Pakistan and England at home. Along with him, the board did not include Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah for the remainder of the England series. Few minutes before the big development, reports had suggested underfire Babar's ouster. Pakistan's white-ball swashbuckling batter Fakhar Zaman reacted to the reports before PCB eventually dropped the out-of-form right-hander. Zaman's post, on X, went viral as he cited Indian star Virat Kohli's example.

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'India didn’t bench Virat Kohli during his rough stretch between 2020 and 2023'

Zaman wrote on X, formerly Twitter, "It’s concerning to hear suggestions about dropping Babar Azam. India didn’t bench Virat Kohli during his rough stretch between 2020 and 2023, when he averaged 19.33, 28.21, and 26.50, respectively. If we are considering sidelining our premier batsman, arguably the best Pakistan has ever produced, it could send a deeply negative message across the team. There is still time to avoid pressing the panic button; we should focus on safeguarding our key players rather than undermining them."

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Also read: Pak vs Eng, 2nd Test: Ben Stokes returns from injury as England announce playing XI vs underfire hosts

Contrary to earlier reports, PCB claimed to have rested Babar, Naseem, and Shaheen. The trio has not been dropped but 'rested' to take some time off and rejuvenate, said reports.

Speaking about Babar's rut, the former Pakistan captain has not scored a fifty in Tests since late Dec 2022. Since then, his highest score is 41 versus Australia, at the MCG, Melbourne, which came early this year. In the first Test against England, in Multan, Babar returned with scores of 30 and 5, and he is now 18 innings without a half-century. 

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Talking about the first Test, Shan Masood-led Pakistan opted to bat first and posted 556. In reply, England declared at 823/7, riding on Harry Brook's 317 and Joe Root's 262. In their second essay, Pakistan folded for 220 and lost the Test by an innings and 47 runs.

Pakistan squad for 2nd and 3rd Tests: Shan Masood (c), Saud Shakeel (vc), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Mehran Mumtaz, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha and Zahid Mehmood.