Say no to friends: Ramiz Raja urges Babar Azam to take ‘strong’ decisions

Former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja has urged the Men in Green’s limited-overs captain Babar Azam to take strong decisions for the betterment of the side.

While speaking on his official YouTube channel, Raja stressed on the importance of having a proper team combination.   

“One thing that Babar Azam needs to understand is that he needs to pay the price of captaincy by taking strong decisions,” said Raja. “At times for the good of the team you will have to sacrifice your best friends, with whom you have played cricket at lower levels, because they won’t improve the team combination.”

The cricketer-turned-commentator also pointed out ways in which Azam can take a leaf out of former captain, current prime minister, Imran Khan’s book as far as leadership is concerned.

“If he wants to become a captain like Imran Khan, he should know that Imran took decisions based on merit and would tweak his team in accordance with the opponents his side were facing,” he said. “He needs to have the freedom, both, tactically and in terms of selection of the team.”

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It must be noted that Azam had expressed his desire to meet Imran Khan in the future, while speaking in an exclusive interview with Cricket Pakistan.

“I have not met Imran Khan yet but I would like to meet him and talk about his tactics on the field, especially during the 1992 World Cup,” said Azam. “I’m sure that will be beneficial for me.”