'There will always be questions, you can't please everyone' - Babar Azam lashes out at journalist after Ramiz Raja's remark

Babar Azam's Pakistan became the latest team to be blown away by England's swashbuckling red-ball side after the visitors completed a historic whitewash in the three-match Test series on Tuesday, December 20. When the Pakistani skipper was asked about PCB chief Ramiz Raja's remark about drafting T20 players in the Test squad, Babar retaliated with a stern reply.

PCB chief Ramiz Raja, during a chat with former England skipper Michael Atherton, suggested the Pakistani skipper follow the blueprint laid out by England, by selecting white-ball specialists for the longest format of the game. He remarked that the future generation of cricketers in the country are more attracted to the shorter formats and wants them to think of Test cricket as the same.

“Like England for example, I suggested to Babar that England are playing the T20 format in a five-day version, so you better pick T20 players here. It's a forced mindset on Pakistan, which I absolutely like. I want the future generation to think of it as a T20 format, like England are playing,” Ramiz said to Sky Cricket during the Multan Test.

It takes time for the mindset to change: Babar Azam

Following an embarrassing series whitewash at home, a first in their Test cricket history, Babar Azam was not in a pleasant mood and when asked about the PCB chief's suggestion of including T20 players, he gave a stern response to the journalist. Babar quirked that things cannot change overnight, especially the mindset of the players. He also stated that even if they start playing aggressive cricket, questions will still remain as it is hard to please everyone.

“The door is not shut for anyone. There is a set plan for everything and we have it for every format. You can't change things in a day or week. It takes time. For mindset to change, it takes time. Then, if we start playing defensively, journalists will ask why we don't play aggressively and when we play aggressively, they ask why we don't play the other way. There will always be questions, you can't please everyone. Ultimately what matters is results. If results don't come then questions will be raised no matter what we do,” he said in the post-match presser.