Missing key veterans Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, Pakistan’s new aggressive approach falters

Dubai: No Babar, no Rizwan — and now, no answers. As Pakistan’s top order faltered again in the absence of their seasoned anchors, a seven-wicket defeat to Bangladesh in the opening T20I on Sunday brought renewed attention to the team’s evolving strategy and the role of experience in high-pressure situations.

Batting first in Mirpur, Pakistan were bowled out for 110 in 19.3 overs, with Fakhar Zaman (44) the only batter offering any significant resistance. The visitors lost four wickets inside the Powerplay and were further pegged back by three run-outs, highlighting a lack of stability through the middle. Bangladesh chased the target comfortably in 15.3 overs, with Parvez Hossain Emon scoring an unbeaten 56 to give the hosts a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Since the start of the year, Pakistan have taken a deliberate step toward a more aggressive style in T20 cricket, opting to back players with higher strike rates and clearer attacking intent. As part of this approach, Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan — Pakistan’s two most prolific T20I run-scorers — have not featured in the last three series. However, the experienced duo returned to the Pakistan training camp ahead of the Bangladesh series.

False indication on pitch condition

While the current squad features explosive players like Mohammad Haris, Khushdil Shah, Hasan Nawaz and Sahibzada Farhan, Sunday’s match demonstrated the challenges that come with relying heavily on aggressive intent, particularly in testing conditions.

Head coach Mike Hesson acknowledged that the team misread the conditions. “We got off to a little bit of a flyer. Fakhar Zaman played four or five shots. It gave us a false indication about how the surface was playing,” Hesson said after the match. “We didn’t help ourselves through the middle. We chose some poor options. When the ball started to nip through and bounce steeply, we probably didn’t assess that it was a bit more challenging to play high-risk shots. A couple of run-outs also didn’t help.”

While Hesson also raised concerns about the pitch not being ideal for international cricket, Bangladesh captain Litton Das and opener Emon both credited their side’s familiarity with the conditions and their ability to adapt quickly.

Pakistan's long-term vision

The absence of experienced names in the bowling unit also played a role. With Shaheen Shah Afridi rested and Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, and Shadab Khan unavailable due to injuries, Pakistan handed debut to young pacer Salman Mirza, who impressed early with two wickets, but the attack lacked control during the middle overs.

Despite the defeat, captain Agha Salman remained optimistic about the long-term vision. He reiterated that the missing senior players, including Babar and Rizwan, were not ruled out for next year’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.

“We have changed the way we want to play but we are confident of our build-up and direction,” Agha said on Saturday, ahead of the series.

Change in approach required

The shift toward an intent-driven model has produced some success — such as Pakistan scoring back-to-back 200+ totals earlier this year for the first time in seven years — but Sunday’s result highlights that the transition may require more balance. The presence of experienced players, especially on slower surfaces and in unfamiliar conditions, could offer the side greater resilience.

Pakistan have two more matches in the series to test combinations and fine-tune their approach ahead of a busy T20 calendar that includes the Asia Cup and the T20 World Cup next year.

- With inputs from agencies