Pakistan earned their first win in the Super Eight stage of the 2026 T20 World Cup with a washout against New Zealand. The Men in Green will now take on former winners England.
T20 World Cup: The Performance
Despite qualifying for the Super Eight and getting off the mark as far as points are concerned in the second round, Pakistan do have certain questions that the team management and the captain need to find answers to, one of being the role of former skipper Babar Azam.
T20 World Cup: The Decision
Many Pakistani journalists and experts have questioned the team’s decision to send Babar Azam to bat at number four, as they are of the opinion that Babar is not a perfect fit to bat in the middle overs and should open the innings instead.
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T20 World Cup: The Question
Mike Hason was asked by a reporter about the rationale behind making Babar bat in the middle order, as he has opened the innings in theT20 leagues that he has been a part of. The reporter asked Mike, we are failing to understand why Babar Azam is batting at number 4. When we look at the timeline of Babar Azam, he opened in LPL, he opened in Big Bash, he opened for Pakistan when he was captain, and even in PSL. But why are you making him play at number 4? Because this seems to be a cricketing suicide for Babar Azam, making him play at number 4 in T20s.”
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T20 World Cup: The Reply
Pakistan’s head coach was quick to reply to the reporter’s query by saying that Babar’s strike rate is low. In thewords of Hesson, “Look, it’s what the team requires, and Babar is well aware of that. I think he’s well aware that his strike rate in the power play in World Cups is less than 100 in T20s, so clearly that’s not a role that we think here we need. We think he’s a fine player through the middle if required, in terms of if we’re in a little bit of trouble, or as we saw against the USA, once he gets himself set, he can increase his strike rate at that point. So, you know, we brought Babar back in for a specific role post the Asia Cup.”
T20 World Cup: The Role
Hesson added that they see Babar performing a specific role in the middle overs when the team is under pressure, and there is no point in sending him even after the 12th over mark.
According to Hesson, “We wanted some batsmanship through the middle, and he certainly brings that for us. And he did in many games throughout the last 10. So, you know, the other day we got to the 12th over mark, and at that point, Babar Azam is not the best person to come in.
“We’ve got plenty of other options who can come in and perform that role towards the end. And Babar is actually the first to acknowledge that. He knows that he’s got a certain set of skills that the team requires, and there are certain times where other players can perform that role more efficiently,” Hesson concluded.