Babar Azam’s protest-driven decision to sit out Day 2 of the third Test against England has caused chaos among the Pakistani cricket team. Babar was absent for the first hour of the second day, and Mohammad Rizwan assumed command. Babar’s absence was initially attributed to a headache; however, it was later revealed that he had stayed in the changing room because he was upset about an altercation he had with a security guard the night before while leaving for dinner.
Rashid Latif, a former Pakistan captain who reported the occurrence on a local news channel, commented on the entire incident. He called it regrettable and requested that Ramiz Raja investigates it as soon as possible. Latif believes that the possibility of Babar and the PCB clashing is not what Pakistan cricket needs right now and anticipates the board chairman to step in as soon as possible.
“Questions will obviously be asked. The reason was not given. Whoever is at fault, chairman Ramiz Raja should look into it. Someone new has been deputed in Karachi but he has to be made aware that they are here to look after the team and its players and not to trouble them. He is the captain of the Pakistan team after all. This should have been looked into and I think as a protest, Babar Azam refused to step into the ground. I mean, the Pakistan cricket captain is protesting against his own board for his own security. We need to ensure this doesn’t happen,” the former Pakistan captain said during the show.
