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Former player Ramiz Raja has rated Babar Azam's captaincy five out of 10 after Pakistan's early exit from the 2024 T20 World Cup. He rated the Men in Green's batting and bowling two and six, respectively, on the same scale.
Pakistan were eliminated from the ongoing T20 World Cup before the Super Eights. Although they beat Canada and Ireland in Group A, their defeats against the United States of America and India knocked them out of the tournament.
During an interaction on Star Sports, Ramiz Raja was asked to rate Pakistan's batting and bowling, as well as Babar Azam's captaincy out of 10.
"Batting would be probably a two and bowling probably a six. I would rate him (Babar) about five because a captain is as good as the team and your captaincy comes through when the team is bowling, and in the bowling department, Pakistan have not done too badly. He tried his best but the others had to put in an effort as well," he responded.
The former Pakistan batter was also asked about the factors behind Babar and company's early exit.
"There was no consistency in selection. Their preparation was hotchpotch because they didn't know who was going to open the innings. They were in that experimental mode for a very long time. Then they had to recall retired players. Even though they have been good in patches, what does it tell of the system?" Ramiz Raja replied.
Ramiz noted that Imad Wasim and Mohammad Amir's recall didn't set a great example, questioning what would happen to the players waiting in the queue and trying to get into the team. He added that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) management and the captaincy change also didn't help the team's cause.
"There is a lot of introspection needed" - Ramiz Raja on the road ahead for Pakistan
Ramiz Raja was further asked about the road ahead for Pakistan.
"They go back home. I think there is a lot of introspection needed. I think there is got to be queries regarding why did they go so horribly wrong, and it's just the game awareness. You can see there is massive talent in bowling. There is bits and pieces in batting also but they have got to sort out the order up here (in the mind)," he responded.
The cricketer-turned-commentator concluded by saying that the Men in Green took some 'mind-boggling' decisions during the tournament.
"They have also got to improve their game awareness, what ball to bowl in a crunch moment, and what shot to play. Like that Super Over where a left-hander in Fakhar Zaman was at the non-striker's end to a left-arm fast bowler's angle. How could they let that happen? It's just mind-boggling, some of the stuff that we saw in this World Cup campaign," Ramiz elaborated.
Iftikhar Ahmed took strike against Saurabh Netravalkar in Pakistan's Super Over loss to the United States of America. Shadab Khan was sent in after Iftikhar's dismissal, with Fakhar Zaman remaining at the non-striker's end for the entire over.
