Ramiz, Yousuf prescribe Babar Azam’s Aussie comeback path

Mohammad Yousuf, the former Pakistani cricketer, extended a message of encouragement to Babar Azam amidst his struggle with the bat in Australia.

This response was prompted by Azam’s dismissal after scoring only one run off seven balls, courtesy of Aussie skipper Pat Cummins on Day 2 of Pakistan’s first innings at the Boxing Day Test.

Babar had had previously scored 21 and 14 in his two innings during the first Test in Perth.

Yousuf conveyed his support on the social media platform ‘X,’ stating, “Be strong now because things will get better, it might be stormy now, but it can’t rain forever.”

Former PCB chairman Ramiz Raja, on his YouTube channel, advised Babar to focus on a tight defensive approach and spend significant time at the crease, urging him to deliver a resilient performance in the second innings.

“The first 15 to 20 minutes for Babar in Test cricket are always crucial, because he tries to adjust and adjusting in Australian conditions is most difficult. He needs to play with tight defense and spend time on the crease. Babar needs to click in second innings and play a fighting innings,” Raja said.

Meanwhile, former England captain Michael Vaughan praised Pat Cummins for dismissing Babar Azam with what he described as an unplayable delivery.

“He’s an incredible bowler. There have been many bowlers who have had the skill and the expertise to bowl well, but he seems to just know the moment,” Vaughan said.

“He knows the moment that his team desperately needs him to get the breakthrough (and he) clearly likes to target quality players. He has certainly got the wool over Babar Azam’s eyes at the moment. It’s no secret that the captain of Australia generally targets the best players,” he added.