'Babar Azam Deserved Better': Pakistan Fans Left Heartbroken After Azam Quits Captaincy

Babar Azam deserved better. A sentiment shared by many a cricket fans from Pakistan came to light after Babar Azam stepped down as the captain of the Men in Green from all formats of the game. The 28-year-old gave up the leadership role after Pakistan failed to qualify for the semi-final of ICC World Cup 2023 where the team could only manage the fifth spot on the points table. Additionally, Azam scored 320 runs in the tournament, nothing extraordinary by his own standards.

As the news of Azam relinquishing his leadership duties broke worldwide, the most disappointed were the cricket lovers of Pakistan, who felt that the cricketer deserved better.

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“Disgusting how the board and all the mafia treated their country’s best ever bat with agendas & conspiracies yet he chose dignity & self respect to resign, left his chair which nobody does in this country,” an upset fan noted on microblogging site ‘X’.

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Many others went down the memory lane to celebrate their “captain”.

Azam being nice and humble after his resignation as he obliged with pictures for fans, shared an ‘X’ user.

“Thank you, Babar”

Better things await Azam, wrote another fan.

“Our Captain Forever”

Babar Azam himself shared the news of his departure as the captain via his ‘X’ account on Wednesday night, much to the dismay of his supporters.

“I vividly remember the moment when I received the call from PCB to lead Pakistan in 2019. Over the past four years, I’ve experienced many highs and lows on and off the field, but I wholeheartedly and passionately aimed to maintain Pakistan’s pride and respect in the cricket world,” Babar’s statement read.

“Today I am stepping down as the captain of Pakistan in all formats. It’s a difficult decision but I feel it is a right time for this call.

“I will continue to represent Pakistan as a player in all three formats. I am here to support the new captain and the team with my experience and dedication. I want to express my sincere thanks to Pakistan Cricket Board for entrusting me with this significant responsibility.”

Pakistan’s star pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi will lead the nation in the T20I.

Meanwhile, Shan Masood will be responsible for the Test duties, Pakistan Cricket Board announced on ‘X’.