National cricketers rue Babar's absence from Pakistan team after Bangladesh defeat

KARACHI: National cricketer Ahmed Shehzad expressed disappointment over star batter Babar Azam's absence from Pakistan's ODI squad following their crushing eight-wicket defeat against Bangladesh in the series opener here at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.

In their first international assignment after the gut-wrenching ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 campaign, which saw them crashing out of the Super Eights stage, Pakistan made several changes to their ODI squad for the Bangladesh series, resting six key players, including Babar.

The Green Shirts, who slotted four debutants in their lineup for the series opener, were blown away by Nahid Rana's five-wicket haul, and folded for meagre 114 in 30.4 overs.

In turn, the home side comfortably chased down the 115-run target for the loss of two wickets and 209 balls to spare, courtesy of Tanzid Hasan's unbeaten half-century.

Following the conclusion of the aforementioned fixture, Test batter Shehzad, who has represented Pakistan in 13 Tests, 81 ODIs and 59 T20Is, stated that he had already highlighted Babar's importance in the middle of the national team's batting lineup, especially against Bangladesh in their home conditions.

The 34-year-old insisted that Pakistan needed a "top-notch" selection following the T20 World Cup 2026 heartbreak, which he described as their worst ever campaign, before slamming the selection committee for following the same method of bringing in a handful of youngsters to play in an unsupportive combination.

"I have warned you beforehand about what Bangladesh can do in [their] back yard [and] how important will [be] Babar Azam in the middle, but like always, 'Apko Sub Pata hai'," Shehzad wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

"Pakistan needed a top notch selection after the worst ever [World Cup] campaign but guess what, same method will [be] applied once again bring dozens of youngsters, expose them in the worst possible combination, humiliate them [and] bring back proven failures yet again.

"Even hopes are dying in this current setup."

Earlier, during the pre-match analysis, former Pakistan cricketer Ramiz Raja had made a similar assessment regarding the national team's combination, emphasising that the visitors needed a "technical hand" and an experienced player in the form of Babar to counter a top-quality opposition.

Raja acknowledged Babar's recent struggles in international cricket but insisted that his stats were never underwhelming in ODIs, hailing him as a "giant" in the format.

"Against a top-quality bowling opposition, you need a technical hand. Yes, Babar Azam's form may have been iffy, but it was never in ODI cricket. I mean, he is a giant in ODIs. His record is phenomenal. Average over 50 and he gets them at a good pace," Ramiz stated.

"Pakistan needs experience also. When you talk about youngsters, you should make sure your fallback position is secure as well. Babar Azam gives them that fallback position," he added.