"I did that for Pakistan" - Babar Azam expresses dissatisfaction at moving to No. 3 in T20Is

Star Pakistani batter Babar Azam has expressed discontent at relieving his opening position to bat at No. 3 in T20Is, admitting that he is doing it only for the demands of the team.

The 29-year-old formed a formidable opening partnership with wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan over the past few years before dropping to No. 3 in the recent New Zealand series. The duo are still on top of the charts for most runs as an opening pair in T20Is with 2,883 runs at an average of almost 49 in 61 innings.

In a recent interview with reporters during the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL), Babar was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan:

"I wasn't under any pressure to score runs as an opener [for Zalmi]. I don’t take pressure of anything. It was Pakistan team’s demand at the time. I did that for Pakistan. If I was asked individually, I wasn’t satisfied with the decision to bat at one down position. However, I did that for Pakistan."

Despite his displeasure, Babar boasts his best T20I batting numbers at No. 3, averaging 47.52 in 24 innings. It is significantly higher than his overall T20I average of 41.55 and his 39.86 average as an opener.

The champion batter scored a hattrick of half-centuries after his move to No. 3 in the first three T20Is against New Zealand. However, the Men in Green suffered defeats in all three games and eventually lost the five-match series 1-4.

Rizwan was predominantly partnered at the top by young sensation Saim Ayub, but the move did not pay dividends, as the 21-year-old managed only 39 runs in four games.

With the T20 World Cup starting in under three months, it remains to be seen if Pakistan continue with Babar at No. 3 or go with the highly successful Rizwan-Babar partnership at the top.

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Babar Azam in scintillating form as opener in PSL 2024

Babar Azam has returned to his favorite opening position for the Peshawar Zalmi in the ongoing PSL 2024 season and has been in a rich vein of form with the bat.

The 29-year-old is the leading run-scorer thus far with 498 runs in nine games at an average of 62.25 and a strike rate of over 148.

Babar also has a century and five half-centuries, leading the Zalmi to the top of the table currently with six wins and three losses. With the lone title in 2017, Zalmi are among the favorites to finally achieve glory for a second time.

They will play Qualifier 1 against Multan Sultans/Quetta Gladiators in Karachi on Thursday, March 14.