Babar | Pakistan

Babar Azam showed his mastery with the bat after Shaheen Shah Afridi led a sparkling bowling performance from Pakistan as the hosts cruised to a four-wicket victory over South Africa in the series-deciding third T20 International at the Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday. Shaheen picked up 3-26, being the standout of Pakistan’s bowling attack, in which Faheem Ashraf and debutant Usman Tariq picked up two wickets each, as South Africa were restricted to 139-9 after being put into bat. Babar then provided an anchor in the chase with a brilliant 68, featuring nine fours, as Pakistan eased to victory with six balls to spare. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif congratulated the team on X, saying, “Very well-played boys in Green!” He also commended Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Mohsin Naqvi and his team for their “great efforts”. In a statement, Naqvi hailed Babar’s batting and Shaheen’s bowling skills for playing an “important role” in the win. Conveying his congratulations to Captain Salman Agha, Head Coach Mike Hesson and...

Babar Azam showed his mastery with the bat after Shaheen Shah Afridi led a sparkling bowling performance from Pakistan as the hosts cruised to a four-wicket victory over South Africa in the series-deciding third Twenty20 International at the Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday. Shaheen picked up 3-26, being the standout of Pakistan’s bowling attack, in which Faheem Ashraf and debutant Usman Tariq picked up two wickets each, as South Africa were restricted to 139-9 after being put into bat. Babar then provided an anchor in the chase with a brilliant 68, featuring nine fours, as Pakistan eased to victory with six balls to spare. Shaheen got Pakistan off to a flyer with two wickets halfway through the first over and almost bagged a third victim two balls later. Opener Quinton de Kock’s stumps were undone on the second ball of the innings with a delivery that jagged back, found an edge and clattered into the woodwork. On the very next ball, Lhuan-dre Pretorious then spooned a catch to Usman Tariq at short fine-leg. Pakis...

DUBAI: Pakistan pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi has expressed confidence in the country’s emerging talent, backing youngsters to step up in the absence of former mainstays Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan. Babar and Rizwan, once Pakistan’s revered T20I opening pair, have been sidelined from the format as the team pursues a more aggressive approach under new leadership. The transition follows the appointments of Mike Hesson as Pakistan’s white-ball head coach and Salman Ali Agha as T20I captain earlier this year. Hesson has publicly stated that Babar and Rizwan need to refine their T20I skills to reclaim their spots in the national XI. With the senior duo out of favour, Pakistan are relying on less-experienced players such as Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, and Mohammad Haris to bolster the top order, while Hasan Nawaz has emerged as a promising middle-order batter. All featured prominently in Hesson’s first three assignments and are set to play when Pakistan begin their tri-nation series in the United Arab Emir...

Pakistan left out Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan from the T20 squad named on Sunday for the Asia Cup and a warm-up tri-series beginning this month against Afghanistan and the United Arab Emirates, according to a press release issued by the Pakistan Cricket Board. Azam and Rizwan have been star performers in the shortest format in the past, but have not played since December, which head coach Mike Hesson put down to other players performing well while addressing a press conference. “We know what a fine player Babar (Azam) is,” said Hesson. “Babar has been asked to improve in certain areas, like taking on spin and in terms of his strike rate, and he is working hard on these things. “The players we have are performing well and having a positive impact,” said Hesson. Since Hesson took over as head coach in May, Pakistan have played three T20 series — winning 3-0 at home but losing 2-1 away to Bangladesh. They then beat the West Indies 2-1 in the United States. “Our focus is to win the tri-series and the Asia Cup,...