"Not being captain will release pressure from him"- Mohammad Hafeez refutes Babar Azam's assessment on captaincy

Pakistan's newly appointed director, Mohammad Hafeez, contradicted star batter Babar Azam's take on captaincy not affecting his batting performances.

Babar relinquished leadership duties from all three formats following Pakistan's dismal run at the Asia Cup and the ODI World Cup. Despite ascending to the No.1 ranked ODI team at the start of the Asia Cup, Pakistan finished at the bottom of the Super Fours points table.

The Men in Green did not fare much better in the World Cup. They won only four out of nine games, to finish fifth and not qualify for the semi-final.

During the tournament, Babar said the burden of captaincy has no impact on his batting.

"As far as captaincy is concerned, I don't have much pressure on me or on my batting. I try to give my best in batting. During fielding, I think about captaincy and during batting I just think about the batting," Babar Azam had said during the World Cup," Babar said.

However, Hafeez offered a contrasting perspective during a press conference in Lahore today.

"As a batsman, Babar Azam has immense contributions for Pakistan. Not being captain will release pressure from him. Captaincy definitely adds pressure onto a cricketer, and if someone denies that, they are wrong. With that pressure eased, I think Babar's performance will get even better. He has already been making excellent contributions for Pakistan cricket, and I think he will further enhance his performance to help Pakistan achieve success," Hafeez said.

Despite the criticism, Babar Azam boasts an impressive record as Pakistan's captain, with 78 wins and 44 losses in 134 games across formats.

His numbers are identical as a captain or non-captain across formats, with an average of 48.03 in 134 games as a skipper and 50.33 in 136 games as a player.

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"It's a golden opportunity, and Shan Masood also has a great chance" - Babar Azam

Shan Masood will step into Babar Azam's shoes in Australia.

Babar Azam expressed his confidence in the emerging players and the new backroom staff for the upcoming three-match Test series in Australia.

Pakistan suffered a 0-2 hammering the last time they toured Australia in 2019/20 and have never won a Test series down under. New Test captain Shan Masood will hope to lead the side to unprecedented glory.

Almost all of them are the same guys, but for the new guys, it's a golden opportunity, and Shan Masood also has a great chance. Wherever you go, you try to dominate; it's not about going there and not being able to dominate, we can do it, we have the ability, and we take it forward in our own way. Whatever work we do, as a team, we are united. We will take experience from Mohammad Hafeez, Umar Gul, and Saeed Ajmal," said Babar.

The previous Test series between the teams was a memorable occasion, with Australia traveling to Pakistan for the first time since 1999. Yet, Pakistan could not deliver the goods in front of home fans, losing the three-match series 0-1.

Australia are coming off their sixth ODI World Cup title and will look to continue their Test dominance against Pakistan in the first Test at Perth, starting December 14.