Out-of-favour Pakistan batter and former skipper, Shoaib Malik has slammed Babar Azam's leadership, once again urging the 28-year-old superstar to step down from captaincy after the Men in Green sustained a confidence-shattering defeat against India in the ongoing 2023 ODI World Cup at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on October 15 (Sunday). Malik, who has played with Babar in the international arena, underlined that the Pakistan captain doesn't think out of the box and has shown no improvements in leadership.
"I gave an opinion in the past aswell that Babar Azam should leave captaincy. This is my personal opinion. Babar does not think out of the box as a captain. He is doing captaincy but the improvement is not coming. He can do wonders for Pakistan as a player," said Malik on A Sports.
Coming back to the match, Rohit Sharma's India completely demolished and demoralised Pakistan by winning the one-sided match with seven wickets and 19.3 overs to spare. As a result, the Men in Blue scaled to the summit of the points table after registering three wins in as many matches played in the tournament so far.
Pakistan managed only 191 runs, even with significant contributions from Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan. Babar delivered a solid 50 from 58 deliveries, while Rizwan came close with a 49-run performance, leading to a commendable 72-run partnership. Siraj's exceptional dismissal of Azam for 2/50 was a turning point in favor of India. Bumrah's clever slow off-cutter for 2/19 in 7 overs found its way between Rizwan's bat and pad, signaling the end of Pakistan's fight.
In their chase, Rohit Sharma showcased his prowess with a scintillating 86-run innings off just 63 balls, guiding India to an effortless victory. This triumph propelled India to the pinnacle of the ODI World Cup 2023 leaderboard, marking their third straight win. This victory not only placed India at the top of the points table but also continued their three-decade-long supremacy over their rivals in World Cup ODIs. It's noteworthy to mention that India has clinched victories in all eight of their ODI World Cup clashes against Pakistan.
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