'It's typical of Pakistan, they change captains' - Ian Chappell empathises with Babar Azam

Babar Azam's era as Pakistan captain ended abruptly as he relinquished captaincy earlier this month after his team had a forgettable performance in the ODI World Cup 2023 in India.

Pakistan didn't have a great Asia Cup campaign but fans were hopeful that Babar would inspire his troops and forge a turnaround in the World Cup. However, that wasn't to be as the former champions finished fifth on the points table in the 10-team competition with four wins and five losses from nine games. The talismanic batter gave up captaincy and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced Shan Masood as captain in Tests and Shaheen Afridi in T20Is.

Legendary Australian cricketer-turned-commentator Ian Chappell said that changing captains is typical of Pakistan and called Babar a 'very good player'.

"Yeah that's a pity, I think Babar's a very good player. He's not leaving the Pakistan side and maybe they can find a better captain. But it's typical of Pakistan, they change captains (frequently)," Chappell said while speaking on the Wide World of Sports Outside the Rope.

Babar's captaincy was widely criticised but his overall record is quite impressive. He has 78 wins and 44 losses in 134 games across formats.

Starc, Cummins, Hazlewood, those blokes will worry Pakistan with that extra bounce: Ian Chappell

Pakistan are set to tour Australia next month to play three Test matches. Masood will be leading the side for the first time in a country where Pakistan have never won a Test series before. Chappell noted that the Men in Green brought strong sides to Australia in the past but their record down under isn't great. The Asian giants have only won four and lost 26 out of the 37 Test matches they have played Down Under.

"The problem with Pakistan is they don't have a great record in Australia, even when they had good sides who could bat and bowl. They've got some good quickies at the moment but the bounce of Australian pitches has always troubled them," the 80-year-old said.

"If you look at the Australian side, they might be on the wane a bit, particularly when Warner goes but they've still got a very good attack and it's a good pace attack. Starc, Cummins, Hazlewood, those blokes will worry Pakistan with that extra bounce," Chappell mentioned.