Former Pakistan batsman Salman Butt backed star player Babar Azam following his poor show at the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy.
After not being able to make hosts Pakistan reach the semis of the Champions Trophy, the fans on social media trolled Babar for not making a sound impact at the highest levels.
However, Butt did request the fans to back their star batsman during these hard times.
Butt said: “His Test average is 44.5 with 9 centuries and 26 fifties. In ODIs, he averages 56.72 with 19 centuries and 32 half-centuries. In T20Is, he has an average of 41 and a strike rate of 129. Can anyone name a single Pakistani player in the last 20 years who has surpassed these stats?”
Butt even added that ‘Babar is no Virat Kohli’ – but he is a special player. However, the fans of cricket in Pakistan feel that he is not able to shine at ICC events.
Pakistan lost the opening game to New Zealand and then faced defeat against India last Sunday. In both games, Babar was not able to score big.
The third and final game of Group A against Bangladesh was washed out due to rain on Thursday. But this game did not have any major impact as India and New Zealand had already reached the semis.
Versus India, Babar scored 23 runs only. Against New Zealand, he scored 60 runs but was not able to make a hundred.
On the other hand, out-of-form Virat Kohli scored a match-winning hundred against Pakistan. And Virat is a player that cricket fans in Pakistan compare with Babar.
