Babar Azam's fall in ICC Test Rankings is a "blessing in disguise" claims former legend

Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali reckons that Babar Azam's fall in the ICC Test Rankings could be a blessing in disguise for the star batter.

Basit also claimed that Babar Azam is not the best batter in ODIs and his ranking should go down in that format as well.

After the first Test between Pakistan and Bangladesh in Rawalpindi, the ICC announced its latest rankings in Test cricket. Babar Azam suffered some huge losses as he fell six places to No. 9 in the rankings.

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Babar had a disappointing Test match overall in which Pakistan suffered a shocking loss to Bangladesh. Babar was dismissed with a second-ball duck in the first innings. He was bowled by fast bowler Nahid Rana for 22 in the second innings.

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Basit Ali feels Babar Azam's fall in the ICC Test Rankings is a "blessing in disguise

While speaking on a video uploaded on his YouTube channel, Basit Ali spoke about the prospect of Babar Azam's fall in the ICC Test Rankings.

The former Pakistan batter reckons that Babar will be hungry to perform now that his ranking has gone down. Basit also claimed that Babar's ranking in ODIs should go down as well

"The biggest news for me is Babar Azam dropping to No. 9 in the ICC rankings. This is very good for Babar Azam. His ranking should go down in the ODIs as well. He is not the No.1 batter in ODIs. Now Babar will be hungry," Basit Ali said.

"If he is still not hungry to perform, it will hurt a lot. The ICC announcing the ranking ahead of the second Test could be a blessing in disguise for Babar," he added.

Babar Azam's failure hurt Pakistan as they suffered an unexpected defeat to Bangladesh.

The next Test match is on the same ground and Pakistan will be aiming to finish the series on a high by levelling the series.

Babar will be under extreme pressure to perform in the second Test. He is regarded as Pakistan's best batter across formats and has the expectations of the whole nation behind him. The 29-year-old will be looking to silence his critics and return to form.

Basit Ali also spoke about the Champions Cup One-day tournament, which will be played in September.

The tournament is the latest edition by the PCB to improve domestic cricket in Pakistan.

Basit Ali advises PCB to copy India

Basit Ali expressed his displeasure over PCB's idea and claimed that the board has just copied the systems of England and Australia.

The former Pakistan cricketer advised the PCB to learn from India, which is more focused on making their base stronger.

"There will be a One-Day tournament called the Champions Cup after the Test series. Pakistan have copied the systems of England, Australia, and New Zealand. India is right next to us, please copy their system too. You need intelligence in copying as well," Basit mentioned.

"Just copy what India is doing. The Duleep Trophy is about to begin. Is it a T20 or One-Day tournament? It is a four-day tournament. They are focused on making their base stronger, which is why they are so successful," he reckoned.

The Duleep Trophy 2024 will mark the beginning of India's domestic season. Several star international players like Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Axar Patel will also be in action in the tournament.