New Delhi: Pakistan captain Babar Azam answered his critics by hitting a second T20I century, starring in a successful chase of 200 runs against England on Thursday night in Karachi.
Babar scored an unbeaten 110 while his opening partner Mohammad Rizwan made 88 not out with the pair making a mockery of the target of 200 runs. The openers lead Pakistan to a big 10-wicket win which helped them draw level at 1-1 in the seven-match series.
Brilliant performances by Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan
The pair broke many records during their double-century stand. They have 1929 runs as partners which is the most in T20I history, surpassing the pair of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan who held the record with 1743 runs.
Babar and Rizwan have also recorded seven-century stands in T20Is which is a record. And the 203-run stand is the biggest chase in a T20 as well.
Pakistan star left-arm fast bowler Shaheen Afridi posted a tweet after the record win which was filled with sarcasm, aimed at the critics who pointed out the relatively low strike rate of Babar and Rizwan harming Pakistan in T20Is.
Shahid Afridi says, ‘Time to get rid of Rizwan and Babar’
Shaheen tweeted which soon went viral, “I think it is time to get rid of Kaptaan @babarazam258 and @iMRizwanPak. Itne selfish players. Agar sahi se khelte to match 15 overs me finish hojana chahye tha. Ye akhri over tak le gaye. Let’s make this a movement. Nahi?”
“Absolutely proud of this amazing Pakistani team,” he added.
I think it is time to get rid of Kaptaan @babarazam258 and @iMRizwanPak. Itne selfish players. Agar sahi se khelte to match 15 overs me finish hojana chahye tha. Ye akhri over tak le gaye. Let's make this a movement. Nahi? 😉
Absolutely proud of this amazing Pakistani team. 👏 pic.twitter.com/Q9aKqo3iDm
— Shaheen Shah Afridi (@iShaheenAfridi) September 22, 2022
Babar was under pressure after a miserable outing at the Asia Cup. During the post-match presentation, he said, “I always had the belief and you need that as a sportsman. The team always supported me and kept backing me.” The third T20I of the series will be played on Friday at the same venue.
