Both the players were not a part of Pakistan's T20I side in the recent outings.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) recently announced the 17-man squad which will be on the flight to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for the Asia Cup 2025. Salman Ali Agha will be leading the side. Though there is a lot of quality in the form of youngsters, the Shaheens will be without two of their most experienced campaigners. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were not included in the squad for the tournament in September 2025. Furthermore, speedster Naseem Shah was also ignored by the selectors, who picked Mohammad Wasim Jr. in his place instead.
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The exclusion of these experienced players does not come as a surprise for the Men in Green. They played without the services of Babar and Rizwan in the two T20I series against Bangladesh and the West Indies this year. Though their performance against Bangladesh was questionable, they did well in the T20Is against the West Indies. Head coach Mike Hesson has claimed that Babar Azam has been given the clarity on what the team needs out of him, of he is willing to make a comeback into the side.
Having said that, former Pakistan speedster Tanvir Ahmed has offered a shocking advice to the duo. The 46-year-old expressed that Babar and Rizwan should consider retiring from international cricket, if they aren’t feeling valued by the board. He stated that the duo might end up feeling disrespected after the Asia Cup 2025 selection snub. To add to that, Ahmed implied that the two players can follow the ‘Virat Kohli’ path and think about retirement.
“If Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan are feeling disrespected, I request them to consider retiring from International cricket. We have examples like Virat Kohli in front of us”, expressed the former speedster via his social media handles.
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From being the No.1 ranked T20I batter to not making it in the squad for the Asia Cup, it has been a free fall for Babar Azam. In the last ICC Men’s T20I World Cup in the United States of America, Babar was re-inducted to the role of being the captain. But the team bowed out in the group stages, after a disappointing display with both bat and ball. His teammate Mohammad Rizwan was an instrumental part of the same squad. And that is where the downfall began for both the players. Cut to 2025, both the players do not fit inro the scheme of things for the Asia Cup.
To say that the duo have been robbed off their positions in the team would not be very fair. They have had their chances in the recent past, but have shown no signs of performance. Hesson mentioned that it would be extremely difficult to keep a player of Babar’s class out for long. But he also added that he must develop his game in the areas communicated to him by the board. The Pakistan head coach also went on to stress that Babar can look towards playing in franchise leagues like the Big Bash League (BBL). That would certainly help his confidence.
To add to that, Tanvir Ahmed also questioned the spot of Fakhar Zaman in the team. Fakhar has been named in the squad for the Asia Cup. The explosive left-handed batter suffered a hamstring injury in the second T20I against the West Indies. Ahmed raised concerns over whether he was forced into the team. It will be Fakhar Zaman’s performance in the Asia Cup that might answer a lot of questions.
“Was Fakhar Zaman forced into the team, or was he included to prevent Babar Azam from being selected? How did Fakhar Zaman get in?” questioned Ahmed.
