‘You think about your team instead of yourself’ - Gautam Gambhir condemns Babar Azam for continuing to open innings

Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir felt that Pakistan skipper Babar Azam should have stepped down in the batting order for the sake of his team. The right-hander hasn’t had the best run so far in the T20 World Cup 2022 and his form has been a huge concern for the Men in Green. He started with a golden duck against India and was dismissed for just four runs against Zimbabwe.  

To add to his woes, a run-out in a low scoring game against the Netherlands saw his downfall soon for just four runs. His captaincy has also been a talking point as experts like Shoaib Akhtar lambasted him for bowling Mohammad Nawaz in the final over against India. Legendary bowler Wasim Akram had also opined that Babar should drop one place to number three due to concerns over the middle-order. 

Gambhir has now joined the list and he left bold remarks over Babar’s captaincy after the latter not sacrificing his opening position.

As a captain, it is easy to be selfish: Gautam Gambhir 

Gambhir, who has captained the Kolkata Knight Riders to two IPL titles, mentioned the importance of understanding the team needs as a leader. He felt that Fakhar Zaman could have been sent up the order as Babar is misfiring and noted the Pakistan skipper being selfish. He further added that the most important thing about leadership is thinking about the team first rather than individual self.

“In my opinion, first, you think about your team instead of yourself; if nothing goes according to your plan, you should have sent Fakhar Zaman up the batting order. This is called selfishness; as a captain, it is easy to be selfish. It is easy for Babar and Rizwan to open the innings for Pakistan and create so many records. If you want to be a leader, you have to think about your team," Gambhir was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times. 

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