Former Pakistan skipper Babar Azam’s troubles in Test cricket seem to be never-ending. After a scratchy 31-run knock in the first innings, Babar lost his wicket to 21-year-old Nahid Rana on Day 4 of the second Test at Rawapindi Cricket Stadium. Babar had been dismissed by Rana in the first Test as well.
In the 19th over of the innings, Rana bowled a short of the length delivery. Babar poked at the delivery with negligible feet movement and edged it to first slip fielder Shadman Islam. He scored 11 runs from 18 balls as Pakistan lost half their side for 65 runs.
Rana would’ve got Mohammad Rizwan’s wicket off the next ball but his catch was dropped by Shadman. In his previous over, Rana had dismissed Pakistan skipper Shan Masood. He handed an easy catch to Litton Das after going for an unnecessary drive away from his body. He scored 28 runs from 34 balls.
Later in the session, he troubled Rizwan with a bouncer that hit his helmet. In the same over, he got the wicket of vice-captain Saud Shakeel as well.
Earlier, in the first Test, he dragged the ball on to his stumps. Rana’s raw pace troubled him in the first innings as well but he lost his wicket to Shakib Al Hasan.
Babar gets backing of teammates
After he lost his wicket in the first innings, teammate Agha Salman defended him in the press conference.
“Babar Azam is a world-class player. As a cricketer, you go through these phases. He has scored consistently throughout the last five years. Soon, we will see him scoring big runs for Pakistan again,” Salman told the reporters.
“As a cricketer, you have such phases in your life. There are 10 other players in the team, you should focus on them. It's fine if he's struggling. He will return to scoring big runs very soon.”
Babar’s long wait for half-century in whites
Babar has not scored a half-century in 16 Test innings. His previous fifty-plus score was 161 which came against New Zealand in December 2022. He managed to score just 64 runs in the two-Test series against Bangladesh. This is third consecutive Test series where he hasn’t crossed the fifty-run mark. The previous two series were Pakistan's tour of Sri Lanka and Australia. He will have another chance when England tour Pakistan in October.
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