Pakistan's Babar Azam during the first Test against Bangladesh.© AFP
Pakistan batter Babar Azam is going through a poor run of form, especially in Test cricket. He has failed to register any fifty in his last 14 Test innings. It was in December 2022 when Babar hit 161 against New Zealand in a Test in Karachi but since then he has struggled to get runs under his belt. He scored only 289 runs in the last 14 innings at an average of 20.64. In the two innings of the first Test against Bangladesh, Babar scored 0 and 22. The fans on social media lashed out at the former Pakistan captain for his failure.
Here are some of the reactions -
After surviving at duck Babar Azam got out on 22.
— abhay singh (@abhaysingh_13) August 25, 2024
Zimbabar for a reason!!#PAKvsBAN pic.twitter.com/M7iRlKbMlr
Babar azam https://t.co/se44xMTfSn
— dopamine (@faisalnazir_) August 25, 2024
— Sagar Lohatkar (@sagarlohatkar) August 25, 2024Babar Azam's recent Test innings have been a struggle:
22, 0, 23, 26, 41, 1, 14, 21, 39, 24, 13, 27, 24, 14.
A challenging run for the star batter from bottom.#BabarAzam pic.twitter.com/88RKZFSZ5k
Bangladesh scripted history on Sunday as the side registered its first-ever Test win over Pakistan. The Bangla Tigers handed a 10-wicket defeat to Shan Masood and co. to register the massive first in their cricket history.
"Never to make an excuse, it (the pitch) didn't play the way we thought it would. Also the weather it had been around in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, it rained around 8-9 days before the first day of play. Firstly looking at the pitch, we expected it to do a bit more. With three pace bowlers, they were gonna be pushed to the limit. At the end of the day, we got it wrong," said Pakistan captain Masood after the loss.
After getting an invitation to bat first, Pakistan declared their first innings at the score of 448 for 6. The decision played a big role in their defeat in the game.
"Hindsight, looking at the declaration, we wanted to push the game forward. Also with the ball and in the field, we could have done better to keep them at par. It's a misconception, with the way it was going to take a lot. When you are playing for a draw, funny things can happen. A lot can happen under pressure. There have been mistakes and we have to do better when we play next.
"It's a huge lesson for us on what to expect from our own conditions. The key is to consider the conditions and not make the same mistakes we have made here," Masood added.