Babar Azam returns to domestic cricket after 7 years

Pakistan’s 3-0 series defeat to England, followed by their WTC points deduction for slow over rate at Edgbaston, have left the Men in Green in ninth place in the ICC Test rankings and at the bottom of the nine-team World Test Championship table, same as in the last cycle.

There were wholesale changes to the team that played the third Test, with seven players being sent home, leaving skipper Babar Azam with a new-look side which nevertheless put up a much better show at Edgbaston.

Babar himself shone only in the second innings of the final Test with a polished 76, having missed the first Test through injury and being dismissed cheaply in both innings of the second Test, with England’s fast bowlers repeatedly exposing his vulnerability against the short ball.

However, the elegant right-handed batter, in a bid to return to his best form, will now play domestic cricket after seven years. The 31-year-old is set to represent Oil & Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) as a guest player in the ongoing President’s Trophy Grade 1 first-class tournament, Cricinfo reported. 

Babar had requested the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to facilitate his inclusion in a domestic side so that he could remain in touch with the longer format and work on his game. The PCB subsequently arranged his participation with OGDCL. His last domestic first-class appearance came when he led Central Punjab to the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy title in December 2019.

Babar joined a number of Pakistan internationals featuring in the President's Trophy amid the PCB's recent push for established players to participate in domestic first-class cricket. ODI captain Shaheen Shah Afridi is representing KRL, while T20I skipper Salman Ali Agha is playing for Kingsmen Academy, according to Dawn.

"Babar will arrive back in Pakistan from the UK on Sept 16 and will join the OGDCL squad the next day," OGDCL sports head Farah was quoted as saying. "His kit has been ordered. Babar will decide upon his arrival if he plays from the second match or the third match," Farah said.

Babar has long been criticised for distancing himself from domestic red-ball cricket. He has not scored a century in Tests since December 2022, when he scored 161 in a draw against New Zealand in Karachi. His Test average since the start of 2023 is 30.43, 12.55 runs lower than his career average in the format.

In 39 innings during this period, he has managed only eight half-centuries, including an alarming 18-innings stretch in which he failed to score beyond 41.

While four of those half-centuries have come in his last five Tests, his highest score since his last century remains 88, made in Pakistan’s win over the West Indies in the second Test of their tour last month.

That victory ended Pakistan’s run of eight successive away Test defeats and marked their first overseas Test win since July 2023, but Babar's inability to convert promising starts into substantial scores remains a significant concern.

Pakistan cricket fans will be hoping that the availability of so many top players in the domestic tournament will give them the much-needed practice for the upcoming series against Sri Lanka and England.