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‘Babar Azam almost cried during very emotional presser’

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Following Pakistan’s humiliation against Afghanistan that left the team’s World Cup dreams in tatters, senior journalist Abdul Majid Bhatti revealed that skipper Babar Azam was on the verge of crying and in emotions spitted out facts before the media.

Bhatti, who is currently in India to cover the mega event, spoke about the fitness issues highlighted by Babar, in his post-match press conference, during Geo News show Geo Pakistan.

On Monday, Afghanistan sailed through Pakistan’s 283-run target courtesy of impressive innings from Ibrahim Zadran (87), Rahmat Shah (77 not out), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (65), and skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi (48 not out) to secure their second win in the ongoing tournament.

“In my opinion Babar Azam’s press conference after the defeat against Afghanistan was a very emotional scene that I witnessed with my eyes which you may have not seen from there (in Pakistan). So, in my opinion he was about to cry and in emotions he spoke a lot of facts that normally cricketers do not state,” said Bhatti

The journalist laid the blame on Babar for the current mess that the Pakistan team had ended up in and shared that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had shut the doors on a fitness regimen when Misbah-ul-Haq left head coach’s position two years ago.

He also lamented the importance being given to Biryani, chops and karahi, ever since the team landed in Hyderabad, and lack of focus on diet.

He highlighted that the players are professionals themselves and should focus on it rather than prioritising other issues.

“Before World Cup you (Babar Azam) were arguing with PCB for three months to increase your salary under the central contract. And close to Rs 5.7-5.8 million is being taken by three players — Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Sha Afridi — given the A category central contract. Its okay money is coming in cricket and you must get paid. But when you under-perform and complain about fitness after being captain for 3.5 years, then I think Babar Azam himself is responsible for this,” said Bhatti.

Meanwhile, journalist Sohail Imran dismissed reports regarding fights within the squad. However, he was astonished that the PCB issued a press release over a social media post

“When players and PCB will come out of social media pressure then there will be a vast difference in team’s performance,” said Imran.

‘Don’t know what players are thinking’, Babar Azam

In his post-match conference, Babar reprimanded the team’s poor fielding performance leading to a humiliating World Cup 2023 loss against Afghanistan at Chennai’s Chidambaram Stadium.

Babar blamed below-par performances in bowling and fielding departments for their consecutive third loss in the ongoing mega event.

“Players are absent-minded during fielding […] don’t know what they are thinking,” the skipper said while admitting that the team is “saddened” after today’s loss.

“We didn’t perform well in bowling and fielding [departments]”, he said and also acknowledged that the “spinners didn’t bowl well in the middle overs and didn’t put [enough] pressure [on Afghan batters].”

The 29-year-old also turned down any “added captaincy pressure” and said that he keeps both aspects of his responsibilities separate from each other.

“There is no truth in [team] being under pressure after India loss.”

“Our [game] plans are not seeing success […] Whatever we plan, is not being implemented to the fullest,” the skipper added.

Babar also congratulated Afghanistan on their historic win while reiterating his commitment to win the remaining matches of the World Cup.

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Sajid Khan smashes Saqlain Mushtaq’s 24-year-old Test record in Pakistan vs England.

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In the opening Test match between Pakistan and England at the Multan Cricket Stadium, off-spinner Sajid Khan created history by taking seven wickets, shattering the 24-year-old record set by the late, great Saqlain Mushtaq.

Day three of the second Test saw England eliminated for 291 after seven wickets from Sajid Khan, trailing Pakistan’s first innings by 366 runs.

During the morning session, the 31-year-old off-spinner claimed three of the four wickets that fell, making it his second five-wicket haul of the day. England had resumed at 239-6 in Multan.

Remaining wicket-taker for Pakistan, with statistics of 3-101, was left-arm spinner Noman Ali.

Sajid Khan ended up being the first Pakistani off-spinner to take five or more wickets at home since Saqlain Mushtaq did it in 2000 at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, taking seven wickets for 111 runs in 26.2 overs.

The scoreboard read 239-6 when England had already resumed their batting. At the crease were Jamie Smith (12) and Brydon Carse (2).

But in the morning, Sajid Khan replaced Carse after they could only add nine more runs. After reaching 21, Smith was caught by Noman, and the off-spinner quickly got rid of Matthew Potts (6).

Prior to Sajid finishing the batting, Jack Leach amassed a vital 25-run unbeaten innings. He and Shoaib Bashir (9) added 29 runs for the final wicket.

Noman grabbed three wickets at a cost of 101 runs, while Sajid took figures of 7-111.

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Second Test between Pakistan and England: Pakistan fights to 366/10 on day two

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Pakistan chose to bat in the second Test match between England and Pakistan in Multan, and by the second session on Day 2, they had amassed 358/9.

(123.3 ov) 366/10

Despite having a hip injury, Aamer Jamal made a significant contribution to the score alongside Noman Ali before being dismissed for 37 runs by Brydon Carse.

As Pakistan tries to extend their first innings score, Noman Ali, who is 29, is still undefeated. With three wickets for forty-three runs, Carse has been very effective. Spinner Shoaib Bashir has also taken a wicket.

The early England wicket burst and the solid 49-run stand between Jamal and Noman have kept the match evenly matched.

England’s goal in opening their batting innings will aim to remove the final Pakistani wicket as soon as possible.

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The PCB has issued a show-cause notice to Fakhar Zaman about a post about Babar Azam.

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The newly constituted selection committee on Sunday excluded Babar, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Sarfaraz Ahmed off the roster for the ongoing second and forthcoming third Test against England.

Subsequent to the announcement, Fakhar Zaman utilized his official X (previously Twitter) account to convey his disappointment. He referenced the manner in which India handled Virat Kohli throughout his challenging period from 2020 to 2023.

“It is troubling to receive proposals regarding the dismissal of Babar Azam.” Fakhar stated that India did not bench Virat Kohli during his challenging period from 2020 to 2023, when he recorded averages of 19.33, 28.21, and 26.50, respectively.

The left-handed batsman commended Babar, deeming him the greatest Pakistani batsman in history, while emphasizing the necessity of strategic decisions instead of resorting to panic.

“Sidelining our premier batsman, arguably the finest Pakistan has ever produced, may convey a profoundly negative message to the team.” There remains an opportunity to avert unnecessary alarm; our emphasis should be on protecting our pivotal actors rather than compromising them,” he stated.

Subsequently, the next day, the PCB issued a show-cause notice to Fakhar for violating the Code of Conduct. The cricket board has requested the dynamic batsman to reply to the notification by October 21.

The second Test between Pakistan and England is now in progress in Multan, while the third and final match of the series is scheduled to take place in Rawalpindi starting October 15.

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