TimesofIndia.com in Colombo: Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson has been candid about Babar Azam’s scoring rate on the eve of their first Super Eight match against New Zealand at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
After Babar had a poor season in Australia’s Big Bash League, scoring just 202 runs in 11 innings at a strike rate of 103.06, doubts arose over Babar’s place in Pakistan’s T20 World Cup squad. He has hit just three sixes this season and has scored 14 or less in all eight games he has played.
In Pakistan’s last match against Namibia, he was not even used in his original position to bat. Khawaja Nafay was brought on when Salman Ali Agha was dismissed off the first ball of the 13th over. After an over, Shadab Khan came in to bat when Nafay was dismissed, leaving Babar on the mat in the dugout.
“Look, this is a role that the team needs and Babar is well aware of that. I think he is well aware that his strike rate in the World Cup powerplay is less than 100,” Hesson said at the pre-match press conference.
“We think he’s a good midfielder if needed, especially when we’re in trouble. As we saw against the United States, once he comes on, he can improve his strike rate. We had Babar back after the Asia Cup in a specific role. We wanted some batting skills in the midfield and he brought that to us.
“The other day, when we got to the 12th goal, Babar Azam was not the best man to play. We had other options that could play that role better at the end. Babar is the first to admit it. He knows that he has a skill set that the team needs and sometimes other players can play certain roles more effectively,” he said.
Against Namibia, Pakistan made two bold decisions, removing Shaheen Shah Afridi and relegating Babar from his designated spot.
When asked if this was a paradigm shift after the loss to India, the coach said: “I wouldn’t say so. Salman Mirza deserved his chance. Babar was the first to realize that it was not wise to field two right-handers when the left-arm spin was building and the pitch was turning. Once the left-arm spin was done, Nafi went out and took over the game. That’s what we needed at that time. It was about roles, not a paradigm shift.”
Hesson also said that Salman Mirza should also be ahead of Shaheen Afridi in the last match. Shaheen conceded 31 runs in two games against India before being dropped against Namibia.
“We decided on Salman Mirza to replace Shaheen and he bowled really well. To be fair, he was probably unlucky not to play the second and third games,” he said.
The coach also clarified his alleged feud with Salman Ali Agha after a video of an altercation during a game in Namibia went viral.
“I got that video and you guys are totally wrong. I was going to talk to Salman about getting Nawaz to wear pads as a southpaw. Agha got upset because he got out of the car and threw his bottle on the ground. It had nothing to do with our conversation,” he explained.
“After the left-arm spin was done, we talked about Shadab coming on and Nawaz putting on the pads. It was a very simple conversation. It’s amazing what people can interpret sometimes,” he added.
Pakistan will face New Zealand on Saturday. The match will be played at the same ground where Sri Lanka played against Zimbabwe.