New Delhi

Newly re-appointed Pakistan white-ball captain Babar Azam has reflected on his first trip to India during the ODI World Cup. Babar expressed surprise at the support he received from the Indian crowd during the tournament whilst adding that the crowd was mostly 'blue' whenever they played. 

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India locked horns with Pakistan at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad where the hosts once again came out on top, maintaining their flawless winning record in the ODI World Cups.  

"That was a different moment. Whenever we looked around the stadium, it was all blue. If you are playing in India then it makes sense that the crowds will be with the home team," Babar said on Zalmi TV podcast.

The Pakistan skipper added that despite the massive support for India, his team also received a 'lot of love' from the crowd. 

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“But even we got good support in different places. We received a lot of love from the crowds and they appreciated us. India vs Pakistan games are highly rated and many people look forward to this. It was a different experience for us,” Babar added.

Also read | PCB reappoints Babar Azam as Pakistan’s white-ball captain

Pakistan captaincy saga

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Notably, it was after the disastrous World Cup campaign where the Pakistan team failed to progress further from the group stage that PCB took the call to sack Babar from his position as the captain in all three formats of the game. Babar's captaincy attracted widespread criticism as he failed to galvanise his troops to put up strong performances. 

However, a little more than four months later, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi confirmed Babar was replacing Shaheen Afridi as the T20I captain. The decision was set in motion after Pakistan lost the T20I series 1-4 to New Zealand and fast-tracked following Afridi's poor handling of his PSL team which won only one out of the 10 matches. 

The decision though, may not have gone down well with Afridi who recently posted an Instagram story seemingly taking a swipe at the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and other high-ranking officials who sabotaged his captaincy tenure. 

Also read | 'Don't test my patience': Shaheen Afridi shares cryptic Insta Story amid ongoing Pakistan captaincy saga

Afridi's rather cryptic statement came days after he denied reports that claimed he had backed Babar as the new captain. 

The PCB statement following Babar's reinstatement as the captain stated that Afridi was prepared to help the batter "on and off the field" and that the team was playing as "one". 

(With inputs from agencies)