Babar Azam might regret taking over as Pakistan captain: Grant Flower

Former Zimbabwe cricketer Grant Flower has cautioned Pakistan’s limited-overs captain Babar Azam about the pressure which comes with leading the Men in Green.  

The 49-year-old believes that Azam needs to be careful with how he goes about his business because of the politics in Pakistan cricket and the reaction of fans.   

"He's got a good cricketing brain but there's a lot of politics in Pakistan cricket and a lot of pressure from the public,” Flower was quoted as saying by Stats Perform News.

"If you start losing, it's one thing being the best batsman but that will put pressure on your batting skills and it can all come tumbling down pretty quickly. We've seen with great players in the past the pressures that captaincy can bring, but some players get better and if he gets better than the world is his oyster. Time will tell,” he added.

Flower, who has also served as Pakistan’s batting coach in the past, also opened up on what made Azam a great batsman.  

"The first time I saw him play and first time I worked with him, when I threw balls at him at the academy in Lahore, he picked up length so much quicker than the rest of the players and I think that's the hallmark of a great batsman,” he said.

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The Harare-born also believes that Azam will go on to break a lot of records and compared him with the likes of Indian captain Virat Kohli and Australia’s prolific batsman Steve Smith.

"If you look at some of the best players in the world like Steve Smith, Virat Kohli et cetera, they pick up length really quickly and play the ball late, have a great eye and hand-eye coordination. He has that and I think he is going to break a lot of records,” he said. "Even in T20 cricket he plays normal cricket shots and that is also the sign of a great player. As long as he stays humble, which I'm sure he will as he's a good bloke, there is no reason why he can't be one of the best and he already pretty much is."