Former Test cricketer Sikander Bakht has expressed his opinion that the current national team captain, Babar Azam, is not a natural-born leader. In a recent interview on a YouTube channel, Bakht stated that Babar lacks the necessary skills of a born leader. He believes that there are many individuals who are naturally suited to leadership, but Babar is not one of them.
Bakht went on to say that Babar has a lot to learn as a captain. He initially expressed his doubts about Babar’s suitability for the captaincy in an earlier interview and was hoping to be proven wrong. However, in his opinion, Babar has not lived up to expectations.
Bakht cited examples of Babar’s weaknesses in captaincy, pointing out that he failed to utilize Agha Salman and Iftikhar Ahmed with the ball in a recent Test series. Bakht recalled that Babar only gave Salman a few overs to bowl in one Test, while he allowed him to bowl complete overs in another match. Similarly, he did not make the most of Iftikhar’s skills.
Under Babar’s captaincy, Pakistan played nine Tests in 2022, losing five, winning one, and drawing three. Pakistan also lost the home Test series against Australia and England.
Bakht further questioned Babar’s captaincy skills, particularly in making decisions according to the situation. He suggested that Babar’s approach was often too scripted, with predetermined plans that did not always work. Bakht stressed that cricket is a game of situations, and a good captain should be able to adapt and react accordingly.
Bakht gave an example of Mushtaq Ahmed, who used to bring Wasim Raja, a great all-rounder of his time, to provide a breakthrough when needed. Bakht believes that Babar needs to learn how to be more flexible and adapt to different situations if he wants to improve his captaincy skills.
Bakht stated that Babar is only a 50 percent captain and needs to learn in the remaining 50 percent. While Babar has led Pakistan to success in some international matches, Bakht believes that he still has a long way to go to become a great captain.
