Babar Azam opens up about Mohammad Haris snub ahead of T20 World Cup
Haris was not named in Pakistan’s squad for the T20I series against Ireland and England
Pakistan captain Babar Azam on Monday shed light on the exclusion of wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Haris from the squad ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024.
Haris was not named in Pakistan’s squad for the T20I series against Ireland and England and is set to miss the World Cup, which begins on June 1, in the United States and West Indies.
While speaking at a press conference ahead of the team’s departure for Ireland tomorrow, Babar said that Haris was not included because there are already many options in the top-order.
“I agree that Haris didn’t get many opportunities after the T20 World Cup [in 2022]. His number is in the top order which already includes me, Rizwan, Saim and Fakhar which is why there were limited opportunities for him. However, Haris did get a chance during PSL 9 but unfortunately, he wasn’t able to do well but this doesn’t mean he is a bad player as every player goes through a rough patch,” Babar said.
“We had a discussion about where Haris would play if he is selected. If he had been included, his position would have been in the lower middle-order. We are quick to make comparisons without thinking about his position in the batting order.
“We wanted to select the best possible squad which fits the team’s requirements at every position.”
Haris has played nine T20Is for Pakistan and has scored 126 runs at a strike-rate of 127.27. He has an average of 14 and highest score of 31 in the shortest format of the game.
Pakistan team will play three T20Is in Ireland, followed by four in England. After the England series, Pakistan will leave for the United States to feature in the T20 World Cup.
The 18-player squad, which was announced for Ireland and England T20Is, will be reduced to 15 players for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 after the first T20I against England on May 22.
Pakistan squad for Ireland and England T20Is
Babar Azam (c), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Usman Khan
