Mike Hesson Denies Asking Babar Azam To Keep Wickets For T20I Return

Pakistan's star batter Babar Azam is nowhere in favor when it comes to selection for the nation's T20I team. In the recent upcoming series against Bangladesh, he was not picked for the team. Since the time he has not been selected for the team, reports have been circulating that the white-ball coach, Mike Hesson, asked the former captain to do wicketkeeping to get his place back in the T20I team.

Meanwhile, Hesson has now finally put a full stop on all these speculations, stating that he has not made any kind of suggestion to Babar. To all these suggestions, Hesson faced the criticism of many like Rashid Latif, Basit Ali, Moin Khan, and Sikander Bakht.

Hesson said,

"No discussion took place with Babar where I suggested he also keep wickets. He has never kept wickets in his entire career, and you suggest he keep wickets. This is not the way to treat a former captain and senior."

The Pakistan head coach also stated that he had not put any kind of record for players that they would be dropped from the team if they batted at a strike rate of less than 150.

He said,

"I have also not told the players that if they want to keep their places in the team, they have to bat at strike rates of over 150. We are working on some things in this direction."

Hesson also stated that he is working very closely with the selection committee in identifying players who can do multiple roles for the team when it comes to T20I cricket.

He said,

"We are looking at players who are ready to float in the batting order and perform multiple roles, but that does not mean there will be no spot for specialist players."

It is to be noted that Shaheen Shah Afridi, Babar Azam, and Mohammed Rizwan are not a part of the T20I setup. The T20I series between Bangladesh and Pakistan will commence on July 20.

Pakistan Squad

Salman Ali Agha (c), Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Hassan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Sufyan Moqim