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Former cricketer Salman Butt opened up on Babar Azam stepping down as Pakistan's white-ball skipper and said that the 29-year-old should have taken the decision earlier.
Earlier on Wednesday, Babar announced that he would be stepping down as the Pakistan skipper so that he can focus more on his performance. Speaking on his official YouTube channel, Butt said that in the last couple of days people were undermining Babar, and it was the right decision from the right-handed batter. The former cricketer added that the 29-year-old should focus on his batting, which will be more valuable for the Pakistan cricket team. "Babar Azam has resigned from white-ball captaincy, and I think there's nothing to talk about it. I think he has done the right thing and should have done it earlier... People were undermining him, and it was a right decision from Babar. He should focus more on his batting and it will be more valuable for the Pakistan cricket team and also he is a great batter," Salman Butt said. Pakistan have not won a major tournament during Babar's tenure as captain, which began in 2019. Last year, under his leadership, Pakistan was eliminated from the Asia Cup in the Super 4 stage after a two-wicket defeat by Sri Lanka in Colombo. A few months later, Pakistan's struggles continued as they failed to reach the knockout stage of the ODI World Cup in India. Following the conclusion of the World Cup, Babar resigned from the captaincy in all formats. Shaheen Shah Afridi was appointed as the T20I captain but was removed after just one series, in which Pakistan lost 4-1 to New Zealand. Babar was subsequently reinstated as the white-ball captain, while Shan Masood remained the Test captain. In the T20 World Cup 2024, Pakistan suffered a disappointing campaign, losing their opening match to co-hosts USA on a tricky surface in New York. This surprise defeat proved crucial as they failed to progress beyond the group stage. (ANI)
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