Shoaib Akhtar blasts Babar Azam's comparison with Virat Kohli

Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has brutally trolled the Pakistan cricket team after their embarrassing defeat to India in the group stage match of Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai.

Akhtar was visibly disappointed with his team's performance and blasted the players for their below-par performance. Shoaib Akhtar also wondered whether the comparison between Virat Kohli and Babar Azam is right given the latter's horrendous show with the bat in recent times.

While Kohli scored a match-winning hundred in Dubai, Babar Azam's poor form continued as he was dismissed for just 23 runs. Babar looked in good touch with the bat but finally edged one delivery from Hardik Pandya to fall for another low score.

Also read: Shoaib Akhtar goes mad after Pakistan's defeat to India in Champions Trophy 2025

Shoaib Akhtar blasts Babar Azam's comparison with Virat Kohli

While speaking on a local TV show 'Game on Hai' on Tapmad Entertainment, Shoaib Akhtar was brutal in his assessment of Pakistan's performance. He believes that the comparisons between Indian and Pakistani players are not right since there is a long gap between the two of them.

"Would you rate Babar (Azam) to Virat Kohli? Would you rate (Shreyas) Iyer to Khushdil Shah? Would you rate Rohit Sharma to Fakhar Zaman or (Mohammad) Rizwan?" Akhtar argued.

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There seemed to be a huge gap between India and Pakistan in this game as the Men in Blue were never really in huge trouble. Despite Pakistan having their moments, India were calm and showed their experience and composure to get out of tough positions.

Babar Azam has often been compared to Virat Kohli as both the players are called 'King' by their fans. However, Kohli seems to be way ahead of Babar at the moment. Babar has struggled to play a significant knock in big games against strong teams while Kohli keeps giving his best when it matters the most.

Shoaib Akhtar laments lack of talent in Pakistan

Shoaib Akhtar further questioned the amount of cricketing talent in Pakistan. While speaking in the same video clip, he feels that the players need to perform on the field and expressed sorrow for the lack of talent in the country.

"What kind of talent? Talent are displayed. You have to do it instead of talking. The stars aren't made like this. You need to get the batters out and score runs. I've been listening to this for years now but there is no talent. If there was a talent, it would have been visible in the last ten years," Akhtar added.

Pakistan's cricket has gone down in the last few years which is displayed from the way they are playing their cricket. While the teams have been looking to be more aggressive, the Men in Green have been relying on an outdated template to win games.

This template has cost them a no. of important games over the years. The lack of intent and hitting skills of the batters has affected the team's winning chances in important games. They need to sort out their playing style if they aim to do well in ICC tournaments in the future.

Pakistan's chances hang by a thread

After losing to India, Pakistan have been pushed closer to elimination from the tournament after just two games. The Men in Green will hope for a few results to go their way which can help them qualify for the next round.

However, it will be a miracle if they can qualify for the semi-finals now. If New Zealand defeats Bangladesh in their next match, Pakistan will be out of the tournament.