Pakistan captain Babar Azam faced a tumultuous journey in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, carrying the weight of expectations for his team. With over 5500 runs in 113 matches, 19 centuries, and 30 fifties, Babar Azam entered the tournament as the number one ODI batsman in the world. He also came in as the record holder for the most runs scored by a captain in an ODI series.
Pakistan, after their early exit from the Asia Cup, found themselves again in a nightmare situation. Defeats against arch-rivals India and a faltering attempt against Australia raised doubts about their future in the tournament. The situation worsened when Afghanistan secured a historic victory, pushing Pakistan deeper down the points table and on the verge of elimination.
Following the devastating loss to Afghanistan, emotions ran high, and reports emerged that Babar Azam had broken down into tears.
“I heard that Babar Azam cried after the loss to Afghanistan yesterday. It’s not just Babar’s fault; the whole team and management are part of it. We stand by Babar Azam during this difficult time, and the entire nation supports him,” former cricketer Mohammad Yousuf said.
“We stand by Babar Azam during this challenging period, and the whole nation supports him,” he added.
Fans across social media rallied in support of the downtrodden captain, expressing faith in his abilities despite recent challenges.
“This is painful for us. We set a good total. Our bowling performance is lacking because we’re not taking wickets in the middle overs. In the World Cup, if you’re not strong in any aspect, you’ll lose the match,” Babar said in the post-match press conference.
“In the field, we failed to prevent boundaries and ended up conceding runs, which proved costly. Bowling-wise, we had a good start, but during the middle overs, we needed wickets, and unfortunately, we couldn’t pick any. Credit to Afghanistan for their performance in all three aspects, that’s why they emerged victorious. Our cricket in bowling and fielding is not up to the mark,” he added.
As Pakistan faces upcoming matches against South Africa, Bangladesh, New Zealand, and England, any defeat will dash their hopes for the title. The cricketing world watches closely to see if Babar Azam can lead his team out of this challenging situation.