World Cup 2023: Hafeez slams Babar after Pakistan lose four in a row, says maturity lacking in his captaincy

Pakistan captain Babar Azam has been facing a barrage of criticism with his team on the brink of crashing out of the ICC World Cup after getting off to a promising start.

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Former champions Pakistan began the mega event with back-to-back wins but would suffer four consecutive defeats in a row, starting with a seven-wicket hammering at India’s hands in Ahmedabad.

Their most recent loss, a one-wicket defeat against South Africa in Chennai on Friday, has the Men in Green staring at prospect of missing out on the semi-finals for a third consecutive World Cup, and both fans and experts are seeing red at the moment.

Among the experts voicing their anger is former Pakistan captain Mohammad Hafeez, who has described Babar’s leadership as one “lacking maturity”.

“When it comes to Babar’s captaincy, that maturity isn’t quite there yet. He has been in charge of the team for three years and the tactical growth hasn’t been there either. When he’s called a great Pakistan player, then I have doubts over it.

“Those who say that probably haven’t seen greats of the game — from Pakistan and around the world. Yes, he is a very, very good player. He is not great yet,” Hafeez said on PTV Sports.

Read | How South Africa’s aggression helped them pip Pakistan in nail-biter

Hafeez also compared Babar to India skipper Rohit Sharma on the topic of leadership. The Men in Blue currently are on a roll with five wins in as many matches, and are among the favourites to lift the trophy in Ahmedabad on 19 November.

“If Babar thinks that the pressure is getting the better of him or it has affected his game, then he has to make the decision whether he wants to continue like this or finish his career like of some of Pakistan’s greatest players.

“Right now, he is the captain of Pakistan, so it we should back Babar. But, he has to improve his game, in terms of aggression. Rohit Sharma has been successful because he is leading from the front,” Hafeez added.

Pakistan began their campaign with an 81-run victory over Netherlands and followed it up by pulling off a record chase against Sri Lanka. They would however lose their next two outings against India and Australia, by seven wickets and 62 runs respectively, before getting outplayed by Afghanistan by eight wickets while defending a target of 283.

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Pakistan were bowled out for 270 by South Africa, with Babar scoring a 65-ball 50 — his third fifty in his last four outings. The Proteas started off on a strong note and were staring at a comfortable victory when a late Pakistani fightback complicated their chase. In the end, the last-wicket pair of Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi ensured the team got over the line with 16 deliveries to spare.