Why did Babar Azam pull out of Pakistan’s National T20 Championship?

Dubai: Former Pakistan skipper Babar Azam has decided to skip the National T20 Championship in order to focus on fixing flaws in his batting technique ahead of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), which begins on March 26.

Babar was left out of Pakistan’s away ODI series against Bangladesh following a disappointing T20 World Cup campaign.

The 31-year-old scored just 91 runs in four innings, with a highest score of 46 against the United States. He managed only five runs against India.

Technical issues

Although he was initially named in the Lahore Whites squad for the National T20 Championship currently taking place in Peshawar, it has now been confirmed that he will not participate in the tournament.

Instead, Babar is working closely with coaches to address technical issues in his batting. While the identities of the coaches have not been disclosed, a source close to the Pakistan Cricket Board said that both Babar and the team management agreed it would be more beneficial for him to focus on correcting technical flaws rather than playing in the domestic competition.

Babar is expected to return to action in PSL 11, where he will open the batting for Peshawar Zalmi.

Once ranked No 1 across formats in the ICC rankings, Babar has struggled to replicate his earlier form since 2024. During the T20 World Cup — won by India — he was dropped for Pakistan’s final Super Eight match against Sri Lanka.

He has also largely stayed away from domestic cricket, having not played in any local competitions since 2020 apart from the PSL. Late last year, he also skipped two first-class matches in Pakistan’s premier red-ball domestic tournament despite being out of form at the time.

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