Follow UsPakistan’s early exit in the ongoing T20 World Cup is expected to open a can of worms when the team reaches home after their final group game on Sunday (June 16). Babar Azam’s captaincy would be among the hot topics of discussion in the Pakistan cricket circles for a few days now.
The 29-year-old moved away from captaincy after a below-par ODI World Cup in 2023. However, as this World Cup approached, he was re-instated as captain. But a group stage exit would bring his spot as captain under scrutiny again. As a batter, Babar was the top-scorer for Pakistan with 122 runs but couldn’t create a positive impact in Pakistan’s favor.
Asked if he would consider stepping down itself, Babar said it would be Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) call.
"When I gave up the captaincy (in 2023), I thought that I shouldn't be doing it now, that's why I left it and I announced it myself," Babar said.
"Then when they gave it back to me, it was the decision of the PCB. When I go back, we will discuss all that has happened here. And if I have to leave the captaincy, I will announce it openly. I will not hide behind anything. Whatever happens will happen in the open. But for now, I have not thought about it. It is eventually PCB's decision,” he answered in the media-interaction after the win over Ireland.
He reiterated that the early exit is a complete team failure and the individuals should not be singled out.
"I told you that we did not lose this because of one particular person. We win and lose as a team. You are pointing out the captain, but I cannot play in every player's place. There are eleven players, and each of them has a role. I think we have not been able to play well as a team. We have to settle down and accept that we didn't play well as a team.
"We accept that we didn't play according to the expectations. The kind of team we had, the experience we had, we haven't been able to deliver at different times. As a player and as a captain, I am not going to single [anyone] out. The fault lies with all 15. We will sit and review. As a captain, my responsibility is to give my feedback to the decision-makers,” Babar spoke at length.
Overall, Babar reckoned the batters couldn’t deliver when it mattered. Pakistan faltered in a crucial run chase against India. Chasing 120, they needed 48 runs off the last eight overs with eight wickets in hand. However, India pulled the game back to win by 6 runs. The result more or less sealed Pakistan’s fortunes after a Super Over loss against the co-hosts, the USA.
“Until you stay on the wicket, don't build partnerships, if you play more dot balls, you'll keep getting pressure. We did not have wickets in hand and we were expecting the tail end to give us a big total. We missed that. We lost wickets in the first six overs and then in middle overs. I think you can say we have given wickets in patches this way,” Babar assessed.
Pakistan ended their campaign with a three-wicket win against Ireland. Opting to bowl first, Pakistan picked 5/32 in the powerplay which Babar felt created the difference in this low-scoring clash.
“I think we were taking wickets in the first six overs so the pressure was on Ireland. We were hitting the good areas,” Babar said.
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