Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan has confirmed that Babar Azam will continue to bat at the top of the order in the Champions Trophy 2025, ending the speculations on the hosts’ batting order.
He has stated that the ace batter was promoted as an opener following Saim Ayub’s ankle injury during the South African tour.
Recently Babar Azam opened for the side alongside Fakhar Zaman in the recently concluded Tri-Nation series where they emerged as the runners.
Babar scored 62 runs in three matches, while in the past he scored 26 runs in two matches while opening against bilateral series against England in UAE.
Mohammad Rizwan has made the case for Babar as an opening batter despite the lack of runs by asserting the need for a left-right combination at the top of the order.
“We have options, but if you look at the combination, Babar will continue opening the batting for us in the Champions Trophy. He is satisfied with his batting position.”
“We want to bring genuine openers, but it is our home conditions, we want a left-right combination. Hence, we decided to have Babar Azam as an opener as he is technically sound batter,” told Rizwan.
Following Babar Azam’s move to the top of the order, the likes of Saud Shakeel and Kamram Ghulam have donned the No.3 role.
The 32 year old wk batter has retained No. 4 position in the middle order while Salman Ali Agha has proven to be a reliable asset higher up the order.
Pakistan captain asserted that the spotlight should not be on his and Babar as the hosts are set out to defend their title on home soil.
“It is not just about me and Babar Azam. Everyone is training very hard and working hard to win the Champions Trophy. We are just controlling the controllables,” Rizwan said.
“As a captain, it feels the best when the win comes through a complete team performance. But in the recent few matches, it has boiled down to individual performances when we have won.”
“The focus right now is on all 15 members, all 15 members are captains. I just come in front of the media or the toss,” he concluded.
Placed in Group A, Pakistan will play their group stage matches against India, Bangladesh and New Zealand.
The Men in Green will play their first match of the campaign against New Zealand on February 19 at National Stadium Karachi.
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