Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan confirmed that Babar Azam would open for the side in the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025. Defending champions Pakistan will play the tournament's opener clash against New Zealand on February 19 at the National Stadium in Karachi.
Rizwan dismissed all the reports from Pakistan media claiming that Shakeel might open with Fakhar Zaman saying that Babar is the right person for the role in the upcoming marquee event.
“It’s not that we don’t have options, we do have. But if you look at the conditions, Babar is the right man to open. We are not sure about reports of Babar not opening the batting. We want genuine openers, but given the needs of the team, we thought that Babar should open as he is a technically strong batter. He is our opener,” Rizwan said in the pre-match press conference.
Babar who got promoted as an opener after Saim Ayub was ruled out of the Champions Trophy doesn't hold a great record as an opener in ODIs. In his last five outings, he managed to score 88 runs at an average of 17.60 with a top score of 29. In Pakistan’s recent tri-series against New Zealand and South Africa, Babar got scores of 10, 23 and 29 on pitches that were batting-friendly.
Mohammad Rizwan for Haris Rauf's injury
Pakistan speedster Haris Rauf also sustained a muscular sprain in the lower chest wall region during the tri-series and he missed two matches of the tri-series. Rizwan said that the pacer is currently fit and ready to feature in Champions Trophy
“He is around 80 per cent fit and bowled six to eight overs yesterday. Prior to that, he was 60 per cent and today, he is in his full rhythm. He worked hard in the gym, bowled his heart out and said that he hasn’t had any issues. So, we hope that he’s fully fit,” Rizwan added.
After finishing the opener clash against New Zealand, Pakistan will travel to Dubai for the high-voltage clash against India which will take place on February 23 at Dubai International Stadium in Dubai.