Former India cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin took centre stage and shared his thoughts about Babar Azam’s slow paced innings against New Zealand.
The Champions Trophy 2025 kicked off with the hosts, Pakistan, taking on New Zealand. Both sides faced off in the season opener at the National Stadium in Karachi on February 19. The clash saw New Zealand come in to bat first and post a mammoth total of 320 runs after centuries by Will Young and Tom Latham, alongside a blistering knock by Glenn Phillips.
Pakistan aimed to chase down the massive total; however, the side failed to do so as the batters could not accelerate in the early stages of the run chase. The Men in Green opened their innings with Saud Shakeel and Babar Azam coming out to bat.
It is worth noting that while Babar Azam scored some runs, he took a long time to put runs on the board. The ace batter took 81 balls to complete his half-century and was eventually dismissed on a score of 64 runs in 90 deliveries. Seeing his performance, former India cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin came forward and gave his take as well.
“I don’t want people to misunderstand me. Babar Azam is a talented player. Even yesterday, he struck a gorgeous cover drive. But one cover drive doesn’t win you games,” Ashwin said in a video on his YouTube channel.
“Where was the intent? Did he forget it at home? Until Salman Ali Agha came out to bat, the scoreboard did not move one bit. If a batter is out of form, I understand. If the ball is swinging or seaming, I understand. Two off-spinners were bowling!” Ashwin said.
It is interesting to note that Pakistan were limited to a score of 260 runs in the second innings as New Zealand won the game by 60 runs. With a poor start to their Champions Trophy campaign for the hosts, Pakistan will now hope for an improved showing in their next game. The Men in Green have a daunting task ahead of them as they are set to face the Indian team in their next game of the tournament.
