"Babar Azam Should Quit Captaincy": Ex Pakistan Star Wants This Player To Take Over The Reins

Babar Azam was the only player to breach the 2000-run mark during the calendar year (2022) across all formats

File image of Babar Azam© AFP

Babar Azam on Thursday was named the 'ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year' and the 'ICC ODI Cricketer of The Year' for 2022. "Babar was the only player to breach the 2000-run mark during the calendar year across all formats, and he did it in style as he broke past that milestone in style while amassing a whopping 2598 runs at an imposing average of 54.12," the International Cricket Coucil said ion a statement. "His haul of eight hundreds and 17 fifties during the calendar year was Babar's best of his career to date and there's no doubt the dynamic right-hander is currently at the top of his game."

However, under his captaincy Pakistan have lost quite a few series at home in recent times. Former Pakistan batter Basit Ali feels that the star batter should quit captaincy.

"Babar Azam should quit captaincy. If he leaves captaincy, he will break all records and surpass records made by greats in the game. His captaincy is affecting his performance with the bat, and he should focus on his batting," Basit Ali was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.

"Shaheen Afridi should be Pakistan's captain. Shaheen can lead Pakistan in ODI and Test cricket if he remains fit. Shadab Khan could be Pakistan's choice as captain in T20I cricket."

Babar, who had a stunning year with the bat in 2021, scored 679 runs from nine ODI matches at an average of 84.87 with three centuries in 2022. Babar is also the top-ranked batter in the ODI rankings, a title that he has held firmly onto since July 2021. Notably, under his leadership, Pakistan lost just one ODI in 2022.