File photo of Virat Kohli (left) and Rohit Sharma.©AFP
Pakistan cricketer-turned-commentator Ramiz Raja backed the duo of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan as the national team’s openers. Reacting to Shahid Afridi’s comments about Fakhar Zaman opening for Pakistan instead of Babar in T20Is, Raja said that the Babar-Rizwan duo may not provide the strike rate of Rohit Sharma-Virat Kohli, but they bring “solidity” to the team. Babar and Rizwan gave Pakistan a solid start, but their strike rate came under quite a bit of scrutiny.
“If you look at what Pakistan have, they cannot afford to start by losing wickets. They (Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan) may not provide the strike rate of Rohit (Sharma) or Virat (Kohli) but, as you know, at least they provide solidity. And with the batting line-up they have, it is important that they start with the opening partnership and pairing,” Ramiz Raja told Cricbuzz.
The opening combination of Babar and Rizwan helped Pakistan reach the final of T20 World Cup 2022 where they lost to England by 5 wickets.
“And there’s a reason Pakistan made it to the World Cup final (2022). About a year ago, against England, they chased 200 and won by 10 wickets (September 2022). Why break what’s working? This phobia. The drop in strike rate should go away because Pakistan lacks such skills and talent,” Raja added.
In the ongoing T20 World Cup, Pakistan have been stunned. The team will need Ireland to beat the United States on June 14 to win the tournament.
Pakistan was eliminated from the tournament after losing the match between the United States and Ireland. With five points from three games, the United States moved from Group A to join India at the Super 8 stage.
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