To call him a one-dimensional player is a little harsh - Rohan Gavaskar defends Babar Azam following recent criticism × Follow Us Create Notifications New User posted their first comment this is comment text Link Approve Reject & ban Delete Log in Manage your profile Editing Story Queue Video Queue Editing Stats Writer Home SEO Redirection Admin Wiki Edits Taxonomy Home Edit Site Menu Mapping Dashboard Tag Pages Community Social Feed Queue Feed Center Notification Center Affiliate Home Manage Pages Bottom Tagline Dash Timeless Stories Logout Cricket News England vs Pakistan 2022 News

To call him a one-dimensional player is a little harsh - Rohan Gavaskar defends Babar Azam following recent criticism

By Aayushman Vishwanathan Modified 29 Sep 2022 Follow Us Comment Share Babar Azam is one of the top batters of this generation. (Credits: Getty) Former Indian cricketer Rohan Gavaskar has defended Pakistan captain Babar Azam by stating he is not a one-dimensional player. Gavaskar insisted that the right-handed batter holds the ability to change gears. Azam, who opens for Pakistan in the shortest format, has faced criticism on multiple occasions for failing to shift gears in matches. Although Azam has excellent numbers in T20I cricket, former cricketers have him criticized for not playing match-winning knocks. Speaking on Sports 18's Sports Over the top, Gavaskar said that the Pakistan skipper is a quality batter and that his second-innings strike rate is better than his first. He claimed: "To call him a one-dimensional player is a little harsh because he is a quality-quality player. And if anything, the numbers suggest that he is not one-dimensional. The fact that he can change gears and you look at his numbers from the first innings to the second innings. "In the first innings, his strike rate is about 125; in the second innings his strike rate is about 137, which shows that he has the ability to change gears." Former Pakistan seamer Aaqib Javed recently took a jibe at Azam's strike rate, saying that they never used to get the batter out during PSL as Azam often plays at his own pace.

I think it is a mental mindset with Babar - Rohan Gavaskar

Babar Azam. (Image Credits: Getty) The 46-year-old feels that Babar's defensive batting is down to Pakistan's unreliable middle-order. Gavaskar feels this put more pressure on the Pakistan skipper. He added: "I think it is a mental mindset with Babar. Fear of failure. And when I say fear of failure, I don’t mean fear of failure as a batter. I could be wrong here; he feels that the Pakistan team revolves around his batting. So, when he is batting first, he feels that he’s got to stay long because if he fails, the team might fail and that can sometimes shackle a player." The former number one-ranked batter recently scored his second T20I century against England. The Lahore-born batter has to come good for Pakistan as they attempt to win the T20 World Cup this year. Get the Latest updates & News on T20 World Cup & Follow us for Live Scores, Schedule, and Squads Poll : 0 votes Quick Links More from Sportskeeda Edited by Ritwik Kumar × Feedback Thank You! Be the first one to comment Follow Us Share Show More Comments GIF Comment in moderation 0 0 Reply x Edit Delete Delete the comment? No thanks Delete GIF Cancel Update GIF Cancel Reply ❮ ❯ GIF Comment in moderation 0 0 Reply x Edit Delete Delete the comment? No thanks Delete GIF Cancel Update GIF Cancel Reply ❮ ❯ Be the first one to comment on this story More from Sportskeeda Fetching more content... 1 Manage your profile Editing Story Queue Video Queue Editing Stats Writer Home SEO Redirection Admin Wiki Edits Taxonomy Home Edit Site Menu Mapping Dashboard Tag Pages Community Social Feed Queue Feed Center Notification Center Affiliate Home Manage Pages Bottom Tagline Dash Timeless Stories Logout No Results Found Get the free App now Manage notifications Popular ‍ Sports (30+) CricketCricket HomeScheduleT20 World CupT20 warm upIND vs SAENG vs PAKAUS vs ENGLegends LeagueECS T10 CroatiaWBBL 2022ECC T10SMAT 2022Bukhatir LeagueNZ T20 Tri-SeriesWomen's Asia Cup 2022ECT10 FootballFootball HomeNewslettersSK Experts ScheduleEPLNations LeagueLa LigaLigue 1Champions LeagueFIFA WCMLS Bundesliga Serie A WWEWWE HomeNewslettersRumor RoundupRAWSmackDownResultsRosterChampionsWWE Crown Jewel 2022PPV ScheduleAEW EsportsEsports HomeMinecraftOverwatch 2RobloxGenshin ImpactFortniteGTAStreamersFree FirePUBGValorantBGMIPop CultureAnimeGaming TechWiki Guides TennisTennis HomeTennis calendarTennis Results TodayATP RankingsWTA RankingsRoger FedererRafael NadalNovak DjokovicSerena Williams MMAMMA HomeUFC NewsONE ChampionshipUFC Fight NightScheduleRankingsResultsUFC Fights TonightONE Championship ResultsONE Championship ScheduleONE Championship Rankings KabaddiKabaddi HomePKL 2022PKL SchedulePKL Points TableKabaddi Rules WikiWiki HomeMinecraft WikiNaruto WikiTikTok WikiYoutube WikiGTA WikiTerraria WikiOne Piece Wiki MoreSportsBasketballIndian FootballNFLMinecraftFormula 1NascarPop CultureCollege FootballHockeyGolfAthleticsBadmintonGymnasticsWrestlingSwimmingTennisShootingBoxingArcheryWinter SportsRobloxFree PicksSkateboardingKho KhoLifestyle LINKS About Us Write For Us Policies Editorial Standards Journalism Awards Fact Check Affiliate Program Careers CSR Privacy Policy Contact Us Edition: English हिन्दी