T20 World Cup: Babar Azam talks about Pakistan's strategy for tournament

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Cricket - ICC Cricket World Cup - Pakistan v Bangladesh - Lords, London, Britain - July 5, 2019 Pakistans Babar Azam in action. — Reuters/File
Cricket - ICC Cricket World Cup - Pakistan v Bangladesh - Lord's, London, Britain - July 5, 2019 Pakistan's Babar Azam in action. — Reuters/File

  • Babar Azam says he will not bat deep at the expense of strike rate.
  • Skipper says team struggles in two areas, middle order, death bowling.
  • "You can't say where we'll finish. Right now we have small goals."


Pakistan skipper Babar Azam has said that he aims to lead his men to victory, just like any other captain, as he assured that the team was keeping its preparations to the fullest.

In an interview with ESPN ahead of the T20 World Cup, which will kick off from October 17, he said: "You can't say where we'll finish. Right now we have small goals. The India game is first, then the New Zealand one and then Afghanistan."

The skipper said when smaller goals are achieved, the team could accomplish bigger tasks naturally and hope that they could perform well on the given day.

The Pakistan squad has undergone four changes since its announcement, with Sarfaraz Ahmed, Haider Ali, Fakhar Zaman, and Shoaib Malik making their way into the team.

Talking about his batting strategy for the team, he said: "I believe if you have the momentum, you need to capitalise on it [...] if we've started well, it's not in my nature to think I should hold myself back or that I must bat deep at the expense of strike rate."

The skipper said, however, if one of the batters is striking well, then the team tries "to bat for as long as possible without changing our game".

"Keep our strike rate up, remain positive, but also try and hang around to take advantage of your form. You can't worry about whether the guys below will deliver," he said.

Talking about the team's struggling areas, he said the squad lagged in two areas — middle order and death bowling. He noted that the team had been struggling with them for some time.

Azam said different combinations were tried to overcome the problems, but the team could make no headway. "Unfortunately [...] that's cricket. If you select players, you cannot guarantee that they will perform. There are ups and downs, and the players we selected were chosen because they had performed elsewhere."