Babar Azam‘s protest-driven decision to sit out Day 2 of the third Test against England has caused chaos in the Pakistani cricket team. Babar was absent for the first hour of the second day, and Mohammad Rizwan assumed command of the team.
Babar’s absence was initially attributed to a headache; however, it was later revealed that he had stayed in the changing room because he was upset about an altercation he had with security personnel the night before while leaving for dinner.
Rashid Latif, a former Pakistan captain who confirmed the development on a local news channel, commented on the entire incident. He called it unfortunate and demanded that Ramiz Raja looks into it as soon as possible. The possibility of Babar and PCB clashing, in Latif’s opinion, is not what Pakistan cricket needs right now.
“Questions will obviously be asked. The reason was not given. Whoever is at fault, chairman Ramiz Raja should look into it. Someone new has been deputed in Karachi but he has to be made aware that they are here to look after the team and its players and not to trouble them. He is the captain of Pakistan team after all. This should have been looked into and I think as a protest, Babar Azam refused to step into the ground. I mean, the Pakistan cricket captain is protesting against his own board for his own security. We need to ensure this doesn’t happen,” the former Pakistan captain said during the show.
Babar Azam’s brawl with the security personnel
Babar was being questioned by a security guard on Saturday night as he and a few of his teammates, including Imam Ul Haq and Azhar Ali, were making their way to a restaurant in Clifton for dinner. According to protocol, players are required to notify security in advance if they plan to leave the hotel grounds.
However, on this occasion, the procedure was not followed, which led to an argument between Babar and the security guards. Evidently, only Babar was the target of the guard’s ire, which did not sit well with the Pakistan captain.
