Ex-cricketer Herschelle Gibbs admitted to language barrier with Babar Azam as he praised Pakistan for their run-chase against South Africa in their tri-series game. With a fan requesting the retired cricketer to give Babar with some tips as he did during the coaching stint with Karachi Kings, Gibbs said the language barrier makes it difficult to get the point across.
The Lahore-born cricketer's struggles continued on Wednesday as Wiaan Mulder trapped him lbw for 23 when the Men in Green were chasing a daunting 353 against South Africa. However, Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha stitched a record-breaking stand of 261 to propel the home side over the line with one over to spare. Babar's last three-figure score came in August 2023.
Gibbs, who has coached Karachi Kings and worked with Babar responded the below to the fan on X:
"Language is an issue with babar .. as you know his English isn’t great so it’s difficult to get points across to him."
Gibbs went on to remark that the former Pakistan captain has maintained the same approach he had a few years ago, writing:
"Was the first time I was working with him so for me it was a more an observation than anything else but what I’ve seen since then is he hasn’t changed his approach and still plays with the same tempo and same shots."
"He still contributing to the extent that we are achieving stability" - Mohammad Rizwan
When asked Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan about Babar's recent struggles, the 32-year-old stated that the weight of expectations is contributing to his downfall and stated in the press conference:
"Babar Azam's problem is that Allah enabled him to score so many runs that we expect to him to get a hundred in every match now. If we look at him normally, he is still contributing to the extent that we are achieving stability. Our expectations have increased so much and Babar has become a massive name due to the runs and centuries he has."
