‘The game has moved too fast’ – Babar Azam given reality check on T20 batting by former RCB captain

Former South Africa captain Faf du Plessis has given a strong statement regarding Pakistan batter Babar Azam’s role in T20I cricket. He was asked about the former Pakistan captain’s situation in the current style of T20 batting.

Pakistan coach Mike Hesson has opted to use Babar Azam’s batting as per the match situation, keeping in mind his low strike rate, especially in the powerplay. After being demoted to the middle order, the 31-year-old batter now finds himself without a fixed batting position.

Reacting to Hesson’s bold decision, du Plessis expressed that the T20 game has moved on a lot in the last few years, especially when it comes to power hitting.

“Look, I think first of all, all great players evolve their careers at different points in their career. So someone like Babar, we know him as one of the world’s best players for a very, very long time. I think the game of T20 cricket has moved so fast forward and towards strike rates that he’s found himself a little bit behind in terms of strike rates. So I think if you’re someone like Mike Hesson, what he’s trying to do is he’s trying to find the best way to introduce him into the game,” he said on ESPNcricinfo.

While acknowledging that the game has moved on from the 120-130 strike rates, Faf believes that Babar can be an asset, especially on turning pitches or in low-scoring encounters where batting with a calculated approach can lead to fruitful outcomes.

“And on spinning pitches in the middle, that’s where someone like him is worth his gold. He can minimize the dot balls, he can strike rates. So he’s found a role for him and especially on slow pitches. When you come to flat wickets, those kind of roles these days are not as important anymore. But on tricky surfaces, there is a role for someone to play in the 120-130 strike rate. So I can imagine he almost looked at how can I maximize the best out of Babar Azam.

“And looking at him in the last couple of years and certainly in the power play, the game has moved too fast, too forward to be at 120 strike rate. Now you need to be 160-190-200 plus for you to maximize that first six overs,” Faf concluded.

Pakistan’s Super 8 match against New Zealand at the R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo, on February 21 was washed out due to the rain. They will now take on England on February 24 in Pallekele.