Waqar Younis defends Babar Azam on Indian podcast as backlash grows

Waqar Younis has defended Babar Azam against criticism of his batting, telling an Indian podcast that Pakistan's line-up rests on one player, a remark that drew both support and sharp criticism from former cricketers and fans this week.

The former Pakistan captain and head coach appeared on Shubhankar Mishra's podcast, recorded in Sharjah and running about 90 minutes, published on Wednesday, BBC Urdu reported. Asked who Pakistan's last superstar was, Waqar named Mohammad Amir and said Babar Azam and Shaheen Afridi are superstars.

Mishra said that as an Indian he remembered what Shahid Afridi, Wasim Akram, Saeed Anwar, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf did against India, but not Babar. Waqar replied that Babar is alone, and that if four names were put around him the pressure would ease. In the 1990s, he said, fans could name all six of Pakistan's top order; today, he asked, who beyond Babar comes to mind?

In the podcast's rapid-fire round Waqar chose Sachin Tendulkar over Inzamam-ul-Haq, Virat Kohli over Babar, Jasprit Bumrah over Shaheen Afridi, Imran Khan over Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni over Javed Miandad.

Miandad's nephew and former Test batsman Faisal Iqbal criticised the Dhoni answer on X, writing that Miandad held Pakistan's batting in Tests and one-dayers for 21 years. He called preferring Dhoni over Miandad disappointing and accused Waqar of backing a failed Babar to keep Indian commentary work.

Other users mocked the argument. Azhar Khan wrote that by Waqar's logic Pakistan would need ten superstars to help one batsman. Mansoor Khan wrote that Babar's lack of middle-order support is real but no justification, since Salman Ali Agha, Hasan Nawaz and Shadab Khan bat around him.

Cricket analyst Umar Farooq Kalson defended Waqar, calling him one of Pakistan cricket's best ambassadors and saying he speaks about his own players in measured terms, unlike some former cricketers on international platforms.

Waqar also said India-Pakistan matches are too rare for either side to show its best. Pakistan does not play Test cricket regularly either, he said, and if two or three such issues were fixed the cricket would improve.

Former all-rounder Imad Wasim joined the defence, writing on X that Babar is a superstar and one of Pakistan's finest one-day batters, and that almost a decade of performances should not be forgotten in a bad patch. He said questioning form and technique is fair, but personal motives, jealousy and character assassination should not be passed off as analysis, and that weaknesses should come with suggestions for improvement.

Express News reported that Pakistan won the tri-nation one-day series against England and Sri Lanka. In the final Babar was out for nought off five balls, and Fakhar Zaman's 127 took Pakistan home by three wickets. BBC Urdu reported that Babar's last international century came in a one-day match against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi last November, his first in two years.