Not Just Captaincy, Babar "Should Be Dropped From Team": Pakistan Great

Former Pakistan batter Zaheer Abbas reserved blockbuster praise for Team India stars Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Abbas' remarks came after India thrashed Bangladesh in a two-match Test series earlier this week. Abbas rubbished the pointless comparisons between Kohli and former Pakistan captain Babar Azam. He admitted that while Kohli scores runs in every other game, Babar, who has been going through a prolonged rough patch, should be dropped from the team. Babar stepped down as captain of Pakistan's white-ball team on Tuesday.

"The comparisons are pointless, Virat Kohli scores in every match, the other player (Babar) doesn't score in any match, so then how can you compare? The person who scores, he is the bigger player. Babar Azam should be dropped from the team. If he's not scoring runs, because if he's our main batsman and he's out of form, he should be out of the team," Abbas said at an event.

Abbas also hailed India captain Rohit and credited him for building a strong and balanced unit.

"The Indian team overall is very good. Their batters are doing well, and the bowlers are strong too. It is a very balanced team, one that plays soch samajh kar (thoughtfully). They have a very good captain who understands cricket very well. When everything is going in your favour, it is smooth sailing, and that's the case with India right now," Abbas added.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Test skipper Shan Masood backed star batter Babar Azam to come good during the home Test series against England, saying that he does not look out of form and is still team's number one batter.

Speaking ahead of the series in a press conference, Masood was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo, "Babar is among the world's best batters. You have to give your players time, not just Babar. Babar does not look out of form, he is getting starts. There was a 10-month gap between the Australia and Bangladesh Tests, which does not help us."

"He played some long innings in the Champions [One-Day] Cup where he absorbed pressure and changed gears. That might help him in tests now. He is the team's number one batter for sure," he added.

Topics mentioned in this article

Pakistan Cricket Team India Cricket Team Babar Azam Virat Kohli Rohit Sharma Syed Zaheer Abbas Cricket