He has struck 175 runs at a mediocre average of 25 and a 76.75 strike rate in seven outings as an opener.
It’s not that Pakistan are in a dire state after losing two consecutive matches, which have ended their campaign in the 2025 Champions Trophy. Things have been going downhill for a while now. This team tends to try too many odd ways before finally taking the right path.
That’s how their opening combination goes. They stuck with Imam-ul-Haq for a long time before finally bringing Saim Ayub to the setup. Even Saim’s spot wouldn’t have been sealed had he not performed immediately.
But Saim aced the opening role, scoring runs consistently at a good rate. He made his ODI debut against Australia last year, accumulating 515 runs at an average of 64.37 and a strike rate of 105.53 in nine outings. He also hit three centuries, which confirmed his spot in the ongoing ICC event.
But as fate would have it, Ayub fractured his right ankle a month before the tournament, which caused Pakistan problems. They had just found an ideal opening combination in Saim Ayub and Fakhar Zaman, who could bat briskly and utilise the powerplay. Still, Pakistan found solace since they at least had Fakhar for the tournament, so at least one end was strong.
But it took only two balls in the competition to exacerbate things beyond repair for the Men in Green. Fakhar sustained an oblique injury while attempting to stop a boundary and was ruled out of the tournament. So, now try processing this from Pakistan’s point of view: they are without two main openers, lost the first game, and play against Bangladesh for pride at the event they’re hosting (an ICC event after nearly three decades).
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Amidst all this, Pakistan had already made a massive mistake, trying to fix something that wasn’t broken. They slotted Babar Azam as an opener to replace Saim Ayub for the title defence. This move meant Pakistan, which already have numerous restrictions, became more one-dimensional as a batting unit.
Babar Azam has struck 175 runs at a mediocre average of 25 and a 76.75 strike rate in seven outings as an opener. He only has a solitary fifty. But it’s not only about this record; a sample size of seven innings is not enough to judge.
Babar’s game against pace is restricted, especially his attacking gears early in the innings. He can’t start quickly and takes too much time to settle, meaning he can’t utilise the powerplay, as his strike rate of 78.60 since 2024 in this phase suggests. With no Fakhar or Saim on the other end, Pakistan need someone who can start briskly and maximise the field restrictions.
Further, his promotion has disrupted a well-settled middle order. At No.3, Babar has a marvellous record and knows how to pace the innings. His position doesn’t need to be changed since he was well settled.
Due to Babar’s change in position, Saud Shakeel had to bat at No.3. He also has restrictions against high pace, which means the innings go nowhere. The top three – Imam, Babar, and Saud – don’t work.
Powerplay utilisation becomes necessary given that middle-order batters need time to break free. That hasn’t happened in the first two games and the results are out there. Pakistan had better options for the opening role.
They have Kamran Ghulam and Usman Khan in the squad, who can open the innings and do the role Fakhar and Ayub would have. Even if they lose their wickets in the process, Pakistan at least find a well-settled middle-order that has done well in tandem. Pakistan haven’t got too much benefit by preserving wickets either.
Suppose Pakistan race away to 75+ in the first 10 overs but lose one of their new openers. They would take it any day since they get some momentum early in the innings to build on. So, even if they slow down in the middle, the run rate pressure won’t mount as much as it would if they score 40 in the first ten overs.
What’s the need of those attacking batters if they can’t come as replacement players and try replicating the same? Changing Babar’s batting position never worked, and it has been proven again. He is always a No.3 batter and the batting resolves around him.
It’s never wise to change other batting positions when the problem is somewhere else, especially when the batter is Babar Azam. Even if he scores big in the next game, Babar should return to No.3. Opening the innings will work for none in the team.
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