If he scored 50 off 60 balls, there is no use: Gambhir SLAMS Babar Azam's batting approach in ODI WC

Former Indian opener-turned-commentator Gautam Gambhir has asked Babar Azam to be more aggressive with the bat as Pakistan seek a turnaround in the ongoing ICC ODI World Cup in India. At present, Pakistan are outside the top four, at the fifth spot, with two wins and equal number of defeats. Ahead of their ongoing clash versus Afghanistan, Gambhir schooled Babar to lead the charge for Pakistan with some aggressive batting.

Talking on Star Sports, Gambhir said, "Babar Azam is under pressure, the entire team is under pressure. Babar has to deliver, because he has the reputation, he has class, he has ability. I picked Babar Azam in the top 5, I backed him to score 3-4 centuries on the pitches in India. Babar has the ability to do it even now."

'The way he played against India, itput more pressure on other batters'

Gambhir further opined, "He has to score runs and make his team win because if he scored 50 off 60 or 70 balls or scored 80 off 120 balls, there is no use. The way he played against India, it gave me an impression that he put more pressure on the rest of the batting unit and he did not release the pressure." He added, "If you want the team to play aggressive cricket, you have to lead from the front. Babar has to play freely, he has to play out-of-the-box cricket, and even out-of-the-box captaincy if Pakistan is to make the semi-final."

So far, Babar has had a mixed run in the ODI World Cup. He has two fifties in five outings, including the 74 versus Afghanistan, but has often been criticised for his strike rate. He is striking at79.69 in the current ten-team tournament with two half-centuries under his belt. It will be interesting to see if he tweaks his batting method and bats more aggressively in the upcoming games.

At present, Pakistan is defending a challenging 282/7 versus Afghanistan in match 22 of the ODI World Cup in Chennai on Monday (Oct 23).

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