'Suryakumar Yadav is thousand times better than Babar Azam': Former Pakistan bowler

Former Pakistan cricketer Danish Kaneria has slammed Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan for playing selfish cricket and not thinking about their country. Kaneria, while speaking on his official YouTube channel, said Babar and Rizwan only play to maintain their ICC rankings as he urged them to think about their country rather than personal gains. Kaneria went on to compare Babar with Indian batter Suryakumar Yadav, who is number three on the ICC T20I batting rankings, saying that the Mumbai-born cricketer is far better than the current Pakistan captain. 

Suryakumar is far better than Pak captain Babar Azam: Danish Kaneria

Kaneria said Suryakumar Yadav plays with great intensity and he plays for his country unlike Babar and Rizwan, who according to him only think about their ICC rankings. Kaneria's comment has come after Babar and Rizwan failed to perform in the first two matches of the ongoing T20 World Cup for Pakistan. The former spinner suggested that both players should give up their opening slots in order for Pakistan to do well in the competition. He said that they don't want to give up their opening spot as they want to maintain their ICC rankings. 

"Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have blocked the opening spot. They have made it clear that they will only open. No doubt their performances have been very good. Babar and Rizwan don't want to give up their opening spot as they want to maintain their ICC rankings. They feel that if they come down the order, they will lose their top spots in the rankings. They should think of the country rather than their personal gains. Suryakumar Yadav is a thousand times better than Babar Azam. SKY plays with great intensity and he plays for his country, not for his ranking," Kaneria said on his YouTube channel. 

Pakistan's performance in T20 World Cup 2022

The Pakistan team has played two matches in the ongoing T20 World Cup so far and has lost both of them by the barest of margins. Pakistan went down against India by 4 wickets in their opening match of the tournament, while they lost to Zimbabwe by 1 run in their second game of the competition. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan failed to put on a significant contribution as they got dismissed cheaply in both matches. Pakistan's success in the previous edition of the T20 World Cup was largely due to the contributions made by Babar and Rizwan. 

After Pakistan's humiliating loss against Zimbabwe on Thursday, their chance of qualifying for the semi-final stage of the T20 World Cup has become very slim. Pakistan will now depend on the results of other teams to go their way in order to make it to the next stage of the competition. The Men in Green will particularly depend on India to succeed at this year's World Cup. 

Image: Instagram/BabarAzam/SuryakumarYadav