Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan need to improve their strike-rate: Inzamamul Haq

Former Pakistan captain Inzamamul Haq is unimpressed with the strike-rate of the Men in Green skipper Babar Azam and wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan.

Speaking after the conclusion of Pakistan’s T20 World Cup warm-up game against West Indies in Dubai, which the Babar-led unit won by seven wickets, Inzamam said that Pakistan’s openers need to improve their rate of scoring.

“Babar and Rizwan have played exceedingly well in the last couple of years but I still feel that they should increase their strike-rate,” said Inzamam on his official YouTube channel.  

“Pakistan is relying heavily on Babar and Rizwan. If they don’t score at a good strike rate, the team will find itself in a difficult situation,” he added. “They need to take advantage of the first six overs, especially in matches against good teams.”

Babar scored 50 runs off 41 balls, while Rizwan added 13 runs off 17 balls as Pakistan chased down 131-run target in 15.3 overs.

“Pakistan chased down the total with more than three overs to spare but that was largely due to Fakhar Zaman’s 24-ball 46,” he concluded.

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Pakistan’s second and final warm-up match is against South Africa on October 20 in Abu Dhabi.

The Men in Green will start their T20 World Cup campaign against India on October 24 in Dubai.