Babar Azam should let go of T20I captaincy to focus on batting, feels Shahid Afridi

Babar Azam has been thrown under the bus by some former players for his mediocre form and average captaincy during the recently-concluded T20 World Cup. Though Pakistan did reach the summit clash where they lost to England by five wickets, Babar Azam’s form was a big worry for every Pakistani fans. During the World Cup, Babar scored just 134 runs with just one fifty and two double-digit scores to his name. This was all but worrying for a batsman who has been on the top of the game for a long time now.

Speaking to Samaa TV post the T20 World Cup, Pakistan legend and former captain Shahid Afridi had some words of advice for Babar. Afridi has suggested Babar must step aside from T20I captaincy and instead focus on his batting which could help him reach heights in longer formats.

Besides this, he even suggested Babar should take a tough call and step aside from his PSL franchise Karachi Kings’ captaincy post as well. "Babar was not happy with the management at Karachi Kings as it is. I feel he should take a tough call and quit captaincy in T20 cricket. He should focus on his batting and lead the team in Tests and one-dayers," Afridi said.

However, Afridi insisted that Babar must continue leading the side in Tests and ODIs and even suggested a few names who could potentially replace him as a skipper in T20Is.

"I respect Babar a lot and that's why I don't want him to take the pressure of captaincy in T20 cricket. I want him to focus on his captaincy in longer formats. You do have players like Shadab, Rizwan, and even Shan Masood who can lead the team in the T20 format," Afridi said.