‘We are a family’: Babar denies rift rumours with Shaheen

Pakistan captain Babar Azam has denied rumours of rift with star pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi during the pre-departure press conference ahead of the ICC World Cup 2023 in India.

Azam said that the entire team is like a family after reports in local media stated that the duo had a fight in the team meeting following Pakistan's exit from the Asia Cup 2023. 

“Everyone respects each other in the team,” Azam said. “It was a normal meeting but it was portrayed as if we had a fight. There was no such thing as we love each other like a family.”

He also shed light on facing arch-rivals India in the mega event.

“I’m very excited to play in Ahmedabad. It is the biggest stadium in the world and will be jam-packed for the India-Pakistan clash,” he said. “I will try to perform to the best of my ability. I can’t exactly tell you how I will do since I’m not an astrologer.”

“I’m not worried about my performance. I always try to perform in a manner which suits the team,” he added. 

The prolific batter also identified areas of improvement ahead of the ICC World Cup, which begins next month. 

“We want to improve our fielding and do better in the middle overs,” he said. “You can’t be perfect as there is always room for improvement. I know we didn’t perform in accordance with expectations during the Asia Cup but we will try to do better during the World Cup.” 

“We are not only thinking about getting into the top four as our target is to be the number one side,” he added. 

Despite criticism over team selection for the World Cup, Azam backed the squad ahead of the tournament.

“I trust my team more than myself. These are the same players who helped Pakistan become the number one side. I know that these players will give their all for the team,” he said.  

The ICC World Cup 2023 will take place in India with 10 teams fighting for the elusive title across 10 venues from October 5 to November 19, with the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad hosting the tournament opener and the final.

Pakistan, who won the mega event in 1992, will be looking to win the trophy for the second time in their history.

The Cricket World Cup will be played in the round-robin format with all teams playing against each other for a total of 45 league matches.

Schedule of Pakistan's warm-up matches

September 29 - vs New Zealand in Hyderabad

October 3 - vs Australia in Hyderabad

Schedule of Pakistan’s main round matches

October 6 - vs Netherlands in Hyderabad

October 10 - vs Sri Lanka in Hyderabad

October 14 - vs India in Ahmedabad

October 20 - vs Australia in Bengaluru

October 23 - vs Afghanistan in Chennai

October 27 - vs South Africa in Chennai

October 31 - vs Bangladesh in Kolkata

November 4 - vs New Zealand Bengaluru (Day match)

November 11 - vs England in Kolkata

The day matches which will start at 10:00am Pakistan Standard Time (PST) while all other matches will be day-night fixtures starting at 01:30pm (PST).

If Pakistan qualify for the semi-finals, they will play in Kolkata.

If India qualify for the semi-finals, they will play in Mumbai unless playing against Pakistan, in which case they will play in Kolkata.

Pakistan squad for ICC World Cup 2023

Babar Azam (c), Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, M Wasim Jnr, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha.

Travelling reserves: Mohammad Haris, Abrar Ahmed, Zaman Khan