Azam Khan's backing grows in Pakistan cricket; former cricket openly revolts against Shaheen Afridi's decision

Pakistan ended their New Zealand tour on a positive note after they won the last T20I of the series by 42 runs. Azam Khan was introduced as Pakistan’s wicket-keeper in this series but had a terrible outing with the bat as he failed to impress anyone with his performances. Pakistani cricketer Sohaib Maqsood has said that if the team is not looking toward Khushdil Shah or Asif Ali then Azam Khan should be playing at No.5

Azam Khan has a terrific record in T20s as he has amassed 2798 runs in 131 T20 innings and boasts a strike rate of 144.59 and an average of 24.76. However, his record in T20Is for Pakistan is shambolic as he has scored only 29 runs in seven innings at an average of 4.83 and a strike rate of 90.62. Azam Khan bats at No.6 or No.7 and he is known for his hitting abilities but has failed to showcase his skills in the national team.

Sohaib Maqsood still feels that he is the best option to bat at No.6 or No.5 if Pakistan is not looking to select Khushdil Shah or Asif Ali. He feels that the position at which Azam Khan bats is important and only a specialist can do the job that is required to be done at that position as he refers to the amount that players who bat at No.5,6 or 7 get Worldwide in different leagues. He feels that it is one of the most difficult positions to bat on.

“Truth is if you are not looking towards Asif Ali or Khushdil Shah then Azam Khan should definitely get a longer go as number 5 because 5,6,7 is the most difficult position in t20s that’s why specialists at this numbers are sold in millions of dollars in the world,” he said on his Twitter.

Watch- Sohaib Maqsood Tweets On Azam Khan’s Performance For Pakistan In The Middle Order

Truth is if you are not looking towards Asif Ali or Khushdil shah than Azam khan should definately get a longer go as number 5 because 5,6,7 is the most difficult position in t20s that’s why specialists at this numbers are sold in millions of dollars in the world #truth

— Sohaib Maqsood (@sohaibcricketer) January 21, 2024

Pakistan faced a terrible defeat in the last two series which they played against Australia and New Zealand. They lost the Test series against Australia, getting whitewashed by 3-0, and then narrowly escaped a whitewash against New Zealand in the five-match T20I series where they lost 4-1 to the hosts. The one win against New Zealand came after a long time since their last victory in the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 match against the BlackCaps.

It will be interesting to see whether Pakistan still plays Azam Khan or if he gets replaced by someone who has a good record playing in that position for Pakistan. He was announced as the wicket-keeper for Pakistan ahead of the T20I series against New Zealand. Mohammad Rizwan was asked to leave the wicketkeeping job and play as a batter to accommodate Azam Khan in the squad.