Former Pakistan pacer **Shoaib Akhtar** came down heavily on **Babar Azam** on *Game On Hai* show, saying: “First of all, Babar should have decided that this format is not for him. Second of all, if you want Babar to play, you should ensure that he plays the first six overs… It is very simple. There is no rocket science in it.” Amid calls for his retirement from T20Is, Akhtar said that Babar’s skills are suitable for top-order powerplay attack and not for a middle-order role.
This comes after Babar’s stellar T20 World Cup 2026 campaign: 66 runs (average ~22, strike rate ~115.78) in four group-stage matches, including 15 against Netherlands, 46 against USA, a low score against India, and not batting (DNB) against Namibia (Pakistan 199/3 with a century from Sahibzada Farhan made). The management demoted him to number 4 (and sometimes even lower) to give priority to power-hitters in the powerplay.
Pakistan head coach **Mike Hesson** defended the move, saying that Babar’s historical powerplay strike rate in the T20 World Cup has been less than 100 (86.17 off 217 balls, scoring 187 runs), making him a bad fit there. Hesson called him “a good middle player” for his stability and acceleration.
Former all-rounder **Mohammad Hafeez** didn’t agree, questioning Hesson’s logic on *Game on*: If Babar can’t bat well in the powerplay or after 10 overs, “then why is he playing?” (Why is he playing?). Hafeez insisted that if Babar is included then he should be in the top three.
This criticism increased further when Pakistan’s Super 8 opener vs New Zealand (21 February) was played at R.K. Colombo, Colombo. Premadasa was washed out at the stadium without even bowling a single ball, and both got one point each. With the pressure of qualification increasing, Babar is facing scrutiny over his value in modern T20 cricket, even though his career average at No. 3 is ~42.87 (strike rate 125.64, which is considered old). There is no major error in the quotes or context.
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