Fri Dec 13 22:24:08 UTC 2024: ## Pakistan’s T20 Woes Continue: Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan’s Slow Starts Hamper Team’s Performance
**JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA** – Pakistan’s cricket team is struggling in the T20 International format, with a dismal win-loss record of 9 wins and 15 losses in 26 matches played in 2023. The team’s poor performance is largely attributed to the slow starts by its two most experienced batsmen, Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, despite their individual run-scoring ability.
The issue came to the fore during the ongoing South Africa tour, where Babar Azam was dismissed for a duck in the first T20I, while Mohammad Rizwan’s 74-run knock proved insufficient to prevent an 11-run defeat. The problem isn’t just a matter of individual scores; analysts point to the pair’s exceptionally slow scoring rate in the powerplay (the first six overs). This slow start puts Pakistan significantly behind the required run rate early in the innings.
A comparison with other top-ranked teams reveals that Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have the lowest strike rates among the top 10 ICC ranked batsmen in the powerplay in 2023. Babar Azam has managed a strike rate of only 120.2, scoring 333 runs in 26 matches, while Mohammad Rizwan has a strike rate of 123.8 with 385 runs in 22 matches, despite an average of 42.78. This slow start, in contrast to other teams that prioritize aggressive powerplay batting, is significantly hindering Pakistan’s chances of success in the T20I format. With two more T20Is remaining in 2023, Pakistan faces a challenge to turn around its fortunes.
First Piper 