Babar Azam's father has responded to the explosive remarks made by former fast bowler Mohammad Asif against the Pakistan captain but also urged fans not to say anything bad about the latter on social media.
Asif, who was banned by the ICC for his role in the 2010 spot-fixing scandal, recently made some controversial remarks against Babar Azam and other players in Pakistan's World Cup squad bound for India next month.
Asif called for a change in Pakistan's captaincy and even claimed that he can bowl a maiden over to Babar in T20 cricket even at his age.
Asif's explosive rant
"I can bowl a maiden over to Babar Azam in T20 cricket even today, he cannot hit the ball if you bowl good deliveries to him.
"We don't have a choice right now to replace Babar Azam as captain. Shahid Afridi is trying for Shaheen Afridi to become captain, but it's not easy," Asif had said on Twitter space.
Asif also claimed to have been the first to spot Babar's talent and get him picked in the team after watching him bat at a trial in Pakistan.
"I selected Babar Azam in the trials after he faced two balls only, you can ask his father that I picked Babar in ZTBL trials. I rate him highly, he is one of the best batters in the country but he plays dots in the power-play and puts pressure on Rizwan."
Azam Siddque's response
Responding to these tweets, Babar's father Azam Siddique took to social media to confirm that Asif did get his son selected but also urged fans to not say anything bad about the controversial former cricketer.
"Babar Azam scored 84 runs and hit 11 fours against Mohammad Asif's team when he was playing U16 cricket. Babar was disappointed as Asif said something to him after getting him out.
"Mohammad Asif saw Babar Azam in ZTBL trials and asked the management to select him after his performance of 84 runs," Siddique wrote.
"Babar Azam will play a maiden over out of respect against Mohammad Asif," he added.
