How Pakistan Will Shoot Itself In The Foot If They Appoint Babar Azam As Test Captain

PCB is planning to appoint Babar Azam as Pakistan captain [Source: AFP]

It is almost official: the Pakistan Cricket Board has made an interesting decision to appoint Babar Azam as their next Test captain. This would be Babar’s second stint as the Pakistan red-ball captain, as he will replace the outgoing Shan Masood.

The decision to make Babar the captain comes as a shocker, as he was not in the scheme of things when it came to leadership, but PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi made the bold call to reappoint the right-handed batter as the leader of the Test team.

However, in reality, this decision could come back to haunt the Pakistan national side, and here’s why making Babar the red-ball skipper could be a bad idea.

1) Babar's own Test form is a cause of worry

Babar Azam has been going through a rough patch in Test cricket for the last three years, and now PCB is set to burden him with the captaincy responsibility as well. He has been trying to get back amongst the run-scorers, and now the batter has to also shoulder the leadership responsibility, which could trouble him.

The former all-format captain left the position in the first place because captaincy was creating pressure on his batting, and life has come full circle for him as he is set to be appointed the leader again.

(Babar Azam last three years in Tests)

• As the numbers suggest, Babar has been going through a rough patch in Tests, and in the last three years, he has only racked up 836 runs in 16 Tests, with an average of 26.
• He has slammed just five fifties, and has zero century-plus contribution as Babar has struggled for runs.
• At one stage, there were rumours that he was likely to be dropped from the Test squad, and instead of allowing him to focus on his batting, PCB has burdened him with the captaincy.'

2) Babar was accused of favouritism during his first tenure as captain

In 2020, Babar began his first tenure as Pakistan’s Test captain, and although he scored truckloads of runs and was the team’s best batter, his captaincy came under scrutiny as many accused him of favouritism.

It was reported that during his captaincy tenure, Babar selected friends in the team, and merit was not given as a criterion to play for the Pakistan national team.

Also Read: What Is Babar Azam's Record As Pakistan's Test Captain Before 2026 Reappointment?

The likes of Imam-ul-Haq and Hasan Ali, who failed to deliver the goods, were continuously picked in the side, and many believed that such decisions were taken due to their close friendships with Babar.

If Babar becomes the Pakistan Test captain again, such favouritism could happen again, and the players might not be selected on the basis of their performances.

3) A bowling captain would have been a better choice than Babar

There is a myth that bowlers aren’t good captains. In fact, tactically, they are better readers of the game than a batter, since they are constantly involved in planning and finding ways to dismiss batters.

What are Pakistan’s strengths in Test cricket at the moment? Is it their batting? No. Is it their spin-bowling? Yes. In Noman Ali, and Sajid Khan, the Asian side has two quality spin-bowlers, and in the last two years, Pakistan has created pitches that suited their style of bowling.

If a bowler becomes Pakistan’s Test captain, he would understand how a bowler truly feels, and he’ll try to create conditions that would be best suited for Pakistan’s biggest assets: their spin bowlers. A bowling captain will urge the home curator to prepare spin-friendly wickets that would help their spinners maximise the conditions and get wickets.

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