‘Babar Azam struggles to handle captaincy’: Waqar Younis warns ‘we are losing a player’

Former Pakistan captain Waqar Younis believes the decision to hand Babar Azam the Test captaincy again could be hurting the batter’s performances, arguing that the team risks “losing a player” by placing the leadership burden on him.Waqar, who has served in several coaching roles with the Pakistan men’s team, said Babar is a technically accomplished batter but appears to struggle when the additional responsibility of captaincy comes his way. He also suggested that Babar’s inability to fully back his teammates under pressure makes the role unfair to both the players and the captain himself.“I have seen him as a player. Technically, a very sound player. Very complete and elegant player. As a player, I don’t personally see anything wrong with him. But I think with the captaincy pressure, he takes a little too much on himself. Whenever he takes this responsibility or is given a responsibility, I don’t think he performs that well,” said Waqar during an event.“So I think we are losing a player if we are going to give him this responsibility because he struggles to handle that. You have to be strong as a person, and you have to be really out there and back your players. If you cannot back your players, it’s unfair to the players and the job,” he added.Waqar’s remarks came shortly after Pakistan endured a 3-0 defeat against England in the three-Test series.The series was overshadowed by a major shake-up within the Pakistan camp. After Pakistan fell 0-2 behind, the Pakistan Cricket Board sent seven players and two coaches back home before the final Test.Babar also found himself at the centre of criticism after revealing ahead of the third Test that he had not been consulted by the board, headed by Mohsin Naqvi, over the decisions.The comment drew criticism from former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram, who questioned Babar for not standing by his team.Babar had returned to the Test captaincy earlier this year after Shan Masood was removed from the position following Pakistan’s 2-0 series defeat against Bangladesh.

Babar still waiting for Test century

Babar’s recent struggles with the bat have added another layer to the debate surrounding his leadership role.The 31-year-old has now gone almost four years without a Test century. His most recent hundred in the format came against New Zealand in December 2022.He came close to ending the drought against the West Indies and again in the third and final Test against England, but missed out on both occasions after being dismissed.Pakistan’s recent results have also left them ninth in the World Test Championship standings with four points. The team were further penalised by an 11-point deduction for a slow over-rate in the third Test at Edgbaston in Birmingham.