Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam shouldn’t be opened in T20Is. The Fakhar Ziman should be the first, and the other at No. To give stability to the middle order, we need 3. This is the solution to Pakistan’s timidity in the top of the format, according to Mickey Arthur and Robin Uthappa.
They are so dependent on Rizwan & Babar, you would want them to be separated,” Uthappa stated on ESPNcricinfo’s T20 Time Out programme. This was after Pakistan lost to India in their Asia Cup opener.
“You might send Fakhar Zaman to bat and have a left-right combination of bowlers so that they are bowling from different angles. You have Rizwan or Babar come in at No. 3. This will give you more depth, and allow someone to play the sheet anchor role and keep one end up.
Uthappa’s Pakistani head coach Arthur agreed with Uthappa for just three years, starting in May 2016. He added that Fakhar would make it difficult for the bowlers change their game.
We were a team that built as much as we could, and that was a great recipe. We had Mohammad Hafeez in the middle and Shoaib Maklik in the middle. That is the difference between that team’s team and our team today. Mickey Arthur, a successful Pakistan T20I side, a few years back
You feel that they are shooting in the darkness a bit. They would have been in a better place if they had figured this out. You can see that they lost five wickets in the last five overs. They would have been able to read the game better, would have assessed wickets faster and would have understood the par score we could defend with the bowling team.
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It’s no secret that Pakistan is heavily dependent on their top three batsmen. Rizwan, Babar, and Fakhar were responsible for almost 67.5% Pakistan’s runs from the start of 2021 T20 World Cup. Even though they are the fastest scoring middle orders, teams know there isn’t much below them.
Arthur stated, “In terms of a blueprint, when we were with Pakistan and had a more successful period in T20 cricket,” Arthur explained. “We built as much as we could, and that was a great recipe for us. There was a big difference between that team’s team and our team today. In the middle we had Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik.
“In the middle, they are a young outfit. They don’t have much experience. When you get them three wickets early, I think they will struggle.”
“I think they should [separate Babar from Rizwan]. Arthur stated that Fakhar’s hitting of the ball in different areas frustrates the bowlers. It’s the angles. You have a left-hand as well as a right-hand. Spread Babar and Rizwan, and put Fakhar Zman back at the top.
Since the start of the 2021 T20 World Cup, Pakistan has won 11 of 14 T20Is. They lost three of their four games while batting first. Rizwan failed to help the innings gain momentum with the middle order during the T20I against India. He was unable to hit 100 in parts of his innings, and was then dismissed in the 15th over after a 42-ball 43.
Uthappa stated that Pakistan has a second template for batting, but that they don’t believe they have created a first template. “They have a basic pattern for six overs. After that they search and don’t know what to do.”
