Azam Khan

‘His fitness is always going to be under the scanner’: Salman Butt’s blunt take on Pakistan’s Azam Khan | Cricket News

Danijones5 months ago04 mins

NEW DELHI: After Pakistan‘s seven-wicket loss to England in the fourth T20I match, former cricketer Salman Butt advised wicketkeeper-batter Azam Khan to improve his fitness, warning that it will be “very difficult” for him to continue playing otherwise.Azam had a poor performance in the fourth T20I, getting dismissed for a five-ball duck in the 11th over by Mark Wood.Speaking on his official YouTube channel, Butt noted that Azam’s eyes were closed when he was dismissed by Wood, and emphasized that Azam’s fitness will always be under scrutiny.“People are going to speak about him. The way he got out today, his eyes were closed while facing the short ball, and then his wicketkeeping. His fitness is always going to be under the scanner. I think he has to decide on his career. He should work on his fitness, otherwise, it is going to be very difficult for him to play,” Butt said.Butt added that the Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter invites criticism due to his fitness levels.“Everything related to Azam Khan will be criticized whenever he doesn’t perform. This is because what he presents is open to criticism. He invites criticism with the kind of fitness he carries. He had problems against the short ball,” he added.Recapping the match, the hosts won the toss and decided to field first. The England bowlers faced some aggressive batting from the opening pair of skipper Babar Azam (36 off 22 balls, with five fours and a six) and Mohammed Rizwan (23 off 16 balls, with three fours).However, spinners Adil Rashid (2/27) and Moeen Ali (1/23) applied pressure, reducing Pakistan to 86/5. A brief fightback from Usman Khan (38 off 21 balls, with three fours and two sixes) and Iftikhar Ahmed (21 off 18 balls, with two fours) helped Pakistan reach 157/10 in 19.5 overs.In addition to Rashid and Moeen, Mark Wood (2/35) and Liam Livingstone (2/17) also performed well with the ball.Chasing 158 runs, England dominated with a powerplay assault by Phil Salt (45 off 24 balls, with six fours and two sixes) and skipper Jos Buttler (39 off 24 balls, with seven fours and a six), making 78 runs in the powerplay.A brief comeback spell from pacer Haris Rauf (3/38) delayed England’s victory. However, Jonny Bairstow (28* off 16 balls, with a four and three sixes) and Harry Brook (17* off 14 balls, with a four and a six) finished the match in 15.3 overs, with seven wickets remaining.Adil Rashid was awarded the ‘Player of the Match’ for his outstanding spell.(With ANI inputs)

Azam Khan shown no mercy after flop show vs England as PCB, Babar Azam accused of ‘nepotism’

Danijones5 months ago03 mins

Azam Khan’s selection for Pakistan’s T20 World Cup team created plenty of controversy, due to his position as son of former national team skipper Moin Khan. Now his form has also not helped his cause, and has given more impetus to fans to criticise his selection. Pakistan’s Azam Khan walks back to the changing rooms after losing his wicket.(AP) The wicketkeeper-batter was dismissed for a five-ball duck in Pakistan’s fourth T20I against England. Receiving a short delivery by Mark Wood, Aam could only loop it into the air, for a simple catch behind the stumps. Pakistan could only post 157 in 19.5 overs. Meanwhile, England reached 158/3 in 15.3 overs, winning by seven wickets. Unlock exclusive access to the latest news on India’s general elections, only on the HT App. Download Now! Download Now! Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, one fan said, “Azam Khan is an embarrassment to international cricket.” Meanwhile, another fan wrote, “PCB ko chahiye keh ICC se baat kar ke Azam Khan ki jagah 60, 60 kg walay 2 players khila le.” Another fan wrote, “No sane team will play Azam Khan again until he sorts out his fitness!” One fan wrote, “Azam Khan is the best example of nepotism in our country. Mediocrity rules here in every department. Shameless people who persisted with him must be charged and sentenced. This is a criminal act not a simple mistake.” Here are the other reactions- For the T20 World Cup, Pakistan are placed in Group A, alongside Canada, India, Ireland and the USA. Babar Azam and Co. will open their campaign on June 6, taking on the USA in Texas. Speaking after Pakistan’s defeat in the series vs England, Babar said, “First six overs, we played very well. After that, the momentum shifted as wickets fell. Our middle-order needs to step up. You need 2-3 good overs in the middle and in the death as well. England’s bowling was very good. Hopefully we don’t do this in the World Cup. We made a couple of changes due to the injuries. Our powerplay was good. We have played good cricket in patches.”

Brutal! Mark Wood’s mean, unplayable bouncer to Azam Khan leaves interet wowed. Watch | Cricket News

Danijones5 months ago02 mins

NEW DELHI: England speedster Mark Wood produced an absolute snorter to leave clueless Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Azam Khan taking evasive action during the fourth T20I at the Oval on Thursday.Wood’s 88.4mph rocket stunned Azam along with the commentators and the fans as the dream ball from the paceman left the batter ducking for cover.The jaffa from Wood came in the 11th over of the Pakistan innings as it caught Azam totally by surprise. As Wood dug in a quick, mean bouncer, angled in from back of length, it rose sharply and hurried onto the batter. Azam, who was on zero, could do nothing and tried to get out of the way of the ball coming straight at his face. In doing so, Azam found himself all over the place as the ball kissed his glove and then looped off the shoulder straight to England ‘keeper Jos Buttler. The unplayable delivery from Wood sent Azam packing for a five-ball duck. In the match, after restricting Pakistan to 157 all out, England powered to the target with 27 balls remaining as Buttler & Co head into the defense of its T20 World Cup title on the back of a 2-0 series victory over Pakistan.

‘Best example of nepotism’: Pakistan’s Azam Khan brutally roasted after another flop show | Cricket News

Danijones5 months ago02 mins

NEW DELHI: Pakistan’s keeper-batter Azam Khan was in the line of fire on Thursday after his side succumbed to a crushing seven-wicket defeat in the fourth and final T20I against England at the Oval. Azam, who scored a five-ball duck and then dropped a couple of sitters behind the stumps drew flak on social media as his torrid run with both bat and gloves continued.The 25-year-old has had a string of low scores recently and has been poor behind the stumps as well and after his dull outing in Pakistan’s final T20I game before the T20 World Cup, questions over his selection and spot in the side were raised on social media. With the defeat, Pakistan lost the T20 series 2-0 as the first and third games in Leeds and Cardiff were washed out. England, on the other hand, now will head into the defense of its T20 World Cup title on the back of a series win over Pakistan. In the final game, after restricting Pakistan to 157 all out, England powered to its target with 27 balls remaining largely thanks to Phil Salt’s 45 and captain Jos Buttler’s 39 in their opening stand of 82 off 38 balls. The T20 World Cup staged jointly in the United States and the Caribbean starts Saturday, with England’s opening match against Scotland in Barbados on Tuesday and Pakistan playing for the first time on June 6 against the US.

England head into T20 World Cup title defense with 2-0 series win over Pakistan | Cricket News

Danijones5 months ago03 mins

NEW DELHI: Defending champions England blew away Pakistan by seven wickets at The Oval on Thursday in their final match before commencing their defense of the T20 World Cup title.Pakistan were restricted to a modest 157, largely due to the efforts of leg-spinner Adil Rashid, who claimed 2 for 27, earning him the player-of-the-match award.England’s chase got off to a blistering start with Phil Salt (45) and captain Jos Buttler (39) putting on a rapid 82-run opening partnership in just seven overs.The match concluded with Harry Brook hitting a six off paceman Haris Rauf, who was the standout bowler for Pakistan with figures of 3 for 38. England reached their target with more than three overs to spare.The victory secured a 2-0 win for England in the four-match T20 series after the games at Headingley and Cardiff were washed out.“We have worked hard in training and there is a good feeling around the squad,” Buttler told Sky Sports.“Guys are all stepping up and performing.”Buttler was leading England after his wife gave birth to the couple’s third child following his dashing 84 in the hosts’ 23-run win in the second T20 at Edgbaston.Earlier, Pakistan had made a promising start, reaching 59 for no loss after losing the toss in overcast conditions at The Oval.However, they experienced a collapse, slumping to 86 for 5. The slide began when captain Babar Azam was caught at slip for a well-made 36 off fast bowler Jofra Archer, while fellow England quick Mark Wood claimed two wickets with well-directed bouncers.“It would have been nice to get two more games in to expose a few guys to different situations,” Buttler added.“But we have really good experience in the group and a lot of guys have been playing in the IPL (Indian Premier League), so we are not short of cricket.”England will begin their T20 World Cup campaign against Scotland in Barbados on June 4 while 2009 champions Pakistan will face co-hosts the United States in Dallas two days later.

Pakistan drop Usama Mir for Ireland and England T20s, bring back Haris Rauf

Danijones6 months ago06 mins

Members of Pakistan cricket team’s selection committee, from left to right, Abdul Razak, Mohammad Yousaf and Wahab Riaz give a press conference to announce squad for upcoming T20 cricket matches against Ireland and England, in Lahore, Pakistan on May 2, 2024. | Photo Credit: AP Pakistani selectors on May 2 dropped leg-spinner Usama Mir for the T20 series in Ireland and England while recalling fast bowler Haris Rauf. Also Read: ICC Twenty20 World Cup 2024: full schedule, dates and venues Selectors Muhammad Yousuf, Abdul Razzaq, Wahab Riaz told a media conference that Pakistan’s World Cup squad would be picked based on the performances of the matches against Ireland and England. Also read: India’s T20 World Cup squad The three-match series in Ireland begins May 10 before Pakistan move to England for four games from May 22. “They are a few fitness issues with Muhammad Rizwan, Haris Rauf, Azam Khan and Irfan Khan Niazi but there has been a significant improvement in their fitness and we are confident they will play in the coming matches,” Wahab said. Wahab also justified recalling pacer Hasan Ali for the coming tour and said that he was already under consideration and basically he is a back up for Haris. “If Haris is fit and performs well in coming matches he is our first choice. He has started bowling but if he doesn’t come through we have Hasan Ali.” Haris got unfit during the initial stages of Pakistan Super League and has not played since February. Razzaq said that leg-spinner Usama has been dropped since Pakistan already has Shadab Khan and Abrar Ahmed in the squad. Yousuf insisted that the recent 2-2 result in the T20 series against a depleted New Zealand outfit was not a bad one. “It is true that New Zealand were missing some main players but it is also for the first time that we also fully implemented the rotation policy by trying out new players in the series,” he said. Yousuf also said that they were pushing the players to be more innovative in their playing their shots and admitted that some players came up short on that front. “Look unless we are not ready to accept failure and move our batters will never be ready to adopt innovative stroke play,” he said. Wahab also said that they had spoken with the new head coach Gary Kirsten and they all agreed that first and foremost they had to remove the insecurity and fear of failure from the minds of the players. “Our aim is to give them an environment where they can give their beat and play fearlessly.” Wahab also said that selecting the playing eleven would remain the domain of the captain and the selectors would not interfere in that area. The selectors also defended Babar Azam’s ability as a captain. “No one is a born captain but from what we saw in the New Zealand (NZ) series there was improvement in his leadership and we are hopeful he will become better and he has captaincy experience. We want to remain on the same page with him,” Razzaq said. Squads: Babar Azam (Captain), Muhammad Rizwan, Azam Khan, Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Irfan Khan Niazi, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Muhammad Amir, Imad Wasim, Naseem Shah, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan, Abbas Afridi and Agha Ali Salman.