Cricket player Imam-ul Haq spoke up for Pakistani captain Babar Azam after the veteran Ahmed Shehzad criticized him for his “unimpressive” performance in the current T20 World Cup 2024.
Along with seasoned cricketers Shehzad and Imran Nazir, Imam is a commentator on the Geo News program Haarna Mana Hai. He made the argument that respect is an important factor to consider while evaluating the team’s performance.
“He is your captain; it’s okay if you don’t want to think of him as such. You haven’t made him the king; the world has,” the Imam said.
Babar should be appreciated for his contributions to the squad and for having participated in 250 international games, Imam said.
Imam insisted that Babar’s performance in the last 20 games shouldn’t be used to overshadow his record in the previous 250 games, disputing that this could be used as an excuse for the captain of Pakistan’s lackluster play. He also emphasized the importance of appreciating his input.
“Is there anyone who have been the number one in Pakistan’s ODI ranking as well as in the T20I,” the batsman said.
“All of us have played for Pakistan, and we all have the right to criticize,” he said. Although the team’s performance against India did not satisfy any of us, we must always remember to show respect for others.
After Ahmed called Babar a “fake king” in his critique, the left-handed batter shared his thoughts on the show on Wednesday by contrasting him with his own numbers.
“I think I could have performed better than those figures. However, my numbers are better than yours, Babar. In T20 World Cup powerplays, you have faced 205 balls, yet you have not struck a single six.” The veteran stated.
As he continued to chastise the Pakistani captain, Ahmed said, “You destroyed the entire domestic structure.” You gave up on being a strong player in domestic cricket to make accommodations for your teammates.”
Imam went on to say that Babar doesn’t care about the criticism he is getting and doesn’t have time to respond to it.
“We’re here on Geo News to talk about cricket, not just Babar. There are more things to talk about,” the cricket player stated, pleading with other sportsmen to treat everyone with respect, regardless of their standing on the squad.
