Babar is working on things pointed out by Akhtar: Malik

Pakistan veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik has stated that skipper Babar Azam is working on the things that Shoaib Akhtar pointed out.

In an exclusive interview with Cricket Pakistan, Malik spoke about Shoaib Akhtar's recent controversial comments regarding Babar’s communication skills.

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“It's his [Akhtar] opinion, and yes, we should respect that, only if that opinion is not hurting the sentiment of an individual player. After hearing that statement, the thing that came in my mind was that he gives his statements bluntly. He has a clean heart, and always speaks positively about everyone," he said.

"His statement was not meant to hurt anyone. I understood from his statement that he was only trying to say that it's the demand of modern cricket to groom your personality along with your cricket skills to become a better brand. I know Babar is working on things that Akhtar has pointed out," he concluded.

Previously, former Pakistan cricketer, Shoaib Akhtar, had slammed Babar Azam’s communication skills in a recent interview with a local TV channel.

"Cricket is one job, and handling media is another job. If you can’t speak, I am sorry, but you won’t be able to express yourself on the TV,” Akhtar had said.

"I want to openly say this that Babar Azam should be the biggest brand of Pakistan, but why he hasn’t become the biggest brand in Pakistan? Because he can’t speak,” he added.

The 41-year-old also heaped praise on young emerging batsman Saim Ayub and urged PCB not to waste his talent by including him in the national squad too early.

"Saim Ayub is a very talented player. But please, don't waste his talent by including him now in the national team. In the Bangladesh Premier League, we were playing for the same team, and from there, I got to know how talented he is," Malik said.

"If he continues to perform well in domestic cricket, I can assure you that he will continue serving the Pakistan team as a proper batsman for eight to ten years. He just needs a couple of years' experience in order to get experience to play in different conditions," he added.