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Babar Will Open Because He is ‘Most Solid Technical Player’, says Rizwan
Follow UsIn the absence of the injured Saim Ayub, Babar was promoted to open in the tri-series featuring New Zealand and South Africa
On the eve of Pakistan’s first game of the 2025 Champions Trophy against New Zealand, skipper Mohammad Rizwan settled the opener debate and confirmed Babar Azam would partner Fakhar Zaman up top for the Men in Green.
In the absence of the injured Saim Ayub, Babar was promoted to open in the tri-series featuring New Zealand and South Africa and had a disappointing outing, registering scores of 10, 23 & 29.
Many hence wondered whether the ‘failed experiment’ would force Pakistan to drop Babar down to No.3, where he averages 60.17, but Rizwan confirmed that the talismanic batter will start proceedings for the Men in Green.
“We have options, it's not like we don't have them. But, if you look at our condition and look at things in terms of the team, Babar always opens,” Rizwan said ahead of the New Zealand game.
“Now, I don’t know if there is any talk of Babar not opening. Babar is satisfied; he will continue to do it.”
Rizwan added that Babar seems to be the best fit to open the batting since he is the most technically equipped player in the country to handle the new ball.
“We want genuine openers. But, as I said in the press that day, the whole programme was like this, that we have home conditions, and we needed the combination of left and right, and the option of tackling the spinner,” Rizwan explained.
“Because of that, we didn't keep any other openers. We thought that Babar is the most solid technical player. So, he will only do it. So, that was the thought behind this. And God willing, he will only do it,” he added.