‘He should not have taken the captaincy again — was he selling chickpeas there?’: Akram blasts Azam

Islamabad: Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram delivered a scathing critique of Babar Azam's leadership, expressing disbelief after the skipper claimed to be unaware of major team shake-ups during their recent Test tour in the UK.

Pakistan suffered a disastrous finish to their three-match Test series in England. Following a second Test loss at Lord's, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) made sweeping adjustments ahead of the final match. Head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul were removed, along with seven players—including senior figures Mohammad Rizwan and Imam-ul-Haq. Meanwhile, Babar’s personal form faltered with three single-digit scores before he registered a rapid 76 in the final innings at Edgbaston, which ultimately came in a losing cause.

Prior to the third Test in Birmingham, when Babar was asked about the mass changes to the squad and staff, the star batter unexpectedly admitted that it was "news to him" and that he had been kept out of the loop.

Speaking at an event in Manchester, as quoted by Geo News, the former fast-bowling legend took sharp aim at Babar's lack of awareness regarding such major decisions.

"Babar Azam said he did not know. If you don’t know, then what were you doing here? Were you here to sell chickpeas?” Akram said.

“As a player or as a person, I believe that if your leader or captain does not stand by you, you cannot give 100 per cent,” he added.

Akram argued that returning to the leadership role after Shan Masood was a mistake and suggested that Babar should have stepped down midway through the series to focus solely on his batting.

"I do not want to blame anyone, and I could be wrong as well," Akram said. "But in my opinion, Babar should not have taken the captaincy. All of this was unnecessary," he added.

"My suggestion is that after the second Test, Babar should have said that he would play only as a player,” he added.

Babar had taken over the Test captaincy in July, replacing Shan Masood ahead of tours to the West Indies and England. During his initial stint as Test captain from 2020 to 2023, he led Pakistan in 20 Test matches, recording 10 victories, six defeats, and four draws. In his recent return to leadership, Pakistan drew 1-1 against the West Indies, where Babar earned 'Player of the Series' honors with 193 runs and two half-centuries.

Compounding their issues on the field, Pakistan were hit with major ICC World Test Championship sanctions due to a slow over-rate during the final Test in Birmingham. The visitors were found to be 11 overs short after time allowances were factored into the Edgbaston Test, which England won by eight wickets. Consequently, Pakistan were fined 50 percent of their match fee and docked 11 points in the WTC standings, leaving them ninth at the bottom of the table with a 4.63 points percentage. (ANI)