Renowned Australian cricketer Ricky Ponting has advised Pakistani batsman Babar Azam to take a page out of Virat Kohli's book in order to regain his form. Babar has been struggling with his performance as of late, leading to his recent exclusion from the team after the first Test against England.
The former Pakistan captain has failed to score a half-century in his last 18 Test innings and also faced challenges with his batting during the T20 World Cup 2024. Upon his return to the national team, he managed to score 37 runs off 44 balls in the first ODI against Australia. Ponting commented on Babar's recent struggles, emphasizing the importance of Pakistan finding a way to reintegrate him into their Test squad.
“The biggest challenge is how they get Babar back into their side. They've got to find a way to get Babar back into form and back into their [Test] team. You know, when you look at (Babar’s) numbers, it's been a bit like the stuff that we were talking about with Virat [Kohli] earlier on,” Ponting said on the ICC Review.
The former Australia captain drew a comparison between Babar's recent performance decline and that of Virat Kohli. He highlighted how the Indian star took a break from the game to focus on improving his mindset.
“Sometimes – and I think Virat was on record saying this – that little bit of a break that he had, he took himself away from the game for a while to freshen up and sort out some things that he needed to sort out,” he added.
In further discussion, Ponting suggested that Babar should consider adopting a similar approach by taking a break to recharge and come back refreshed.
“This might be exactly what Babar needs. Maybe Babar needs to get away for a while and stop trying too hard. Lock the kit bag away for a while, and think about something else and then hopefully come back recharged, because we know at his best he's as good as anyone going around. Hopefully we get to see that in the back half of his career again” Ponting said.
Babar Azam is determined to stage a strong comeback in the upcoming second ODI against Australia, scheduled to take place on Friday, November 8 at Adelaide Oval in Adelaide. The Pakistan team is also focused on regaining their momentum after a narrow two-wicket loss in the first ODI.
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