Babar Azam’s struggles in Test cricket continued unabated as the former Pakistan captain once again failed to capitalize on a golden opportunity to silence his critics during the first Test against England in Multan on Monday.
Despite Pakistan’s strong showing on Day 1, with Shan Masood (151) and Abdullah Shafique (102) putting up a mammoth 253-run stand, Babar failed to capitalize on a comfortable position, scoring only 30 off 71 balls before being trapped lbw by England’s Chris Woakes in the final session of the day.
Woakes set him up brilliantly, beating him on both the outside and inside edges before delivering a full-length ball that nipped in just enough to hit Babar in front of the stumps. Babar reviewed the decision, hoping for a reprieve, but ball-tracking showed it was crashing into leg stump.
The dismissal extended Babar’s poor run in Test cricket, leaving fans disappointed once again. What added salt to the wound was the reaction of fans in the stadium. Several spectators were caught on camera sleeping during Babar’s innings, a moment that quickly went viral on social media.
Fans expressed their frustration online, trolling the Pakistan skipper for his continued lacklustre performances.
Despite Babar forging a 61-run partnership with Saud Shakeel, his inability to convert starts into big scores is becoming a pattern that has fueled criticism, especially given Pakistan’s dominance earlier in the day.
Pakistan still ended Day 1 in a commanding position at 328/4, thanks to Masood and Shafique’s heroics. But with every failure, the pressure mounts on Babar to regain his form and silence the growing voices of doubt.
