In a surprising twist, Ahmed Shahzad defends Babar Azam after PSL 2025 exit: 'Why is all the pressure always on him?'

After being critical of Babar Azam in recent months, Ahmed Shehzad has defended the former Pakistan captain following Peshawar Zalmi’s early exit from the ongoing season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL). Zalmi crashed out of the ongoing PSL season after suffering a 26-run defeat at the hands of Lahore Qalandars in a rain-affected game in Rawalpindi on Sunday.

Shehzad had directed his ire at batting star Babar, who had until recently been leading Pakistan across formats, for the national team’s humiliating first-round exit from the T20 World Cup last year and for letting the nation down with his inability to make meaningful contributions in the Champions Trophy earlier this year.

‘Accountability can’t be selective’

Former Pakistan opener Shehzad, however, was more sympathetic towards the senior batter after Zalmi failed to reach the PSL playoffs for the first time in the tournament’s history with Babar in charge.

“Yes, Babar Azam is out of form. Yes, his last 50 was slow. But why is all the pressure always on him? Cricket is a team game. What are the other 10 doing? He was taking risks today which was the right approach,” Shehzad wrote in a post on X earlier this week.

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“Where are the rest of the batters when it matters the most? Accountability can’t be selective,” added Shehzad, who represented Pakistan in 13 Tests as well as 81 ODIs and 59 T20Is from 2009 to 2019.

Zalmi finished the season at the fifth spot with four wins and six defeats and a Net Run Rate of -0.293, getting beaten to the playoff spots by Qalandars, who were a point ahead of Sunday’s game.

Babar, who had previously represented Islamabad United and Karachi Kings in the PSL, finished the season with 288 runs from 10 outings, collecting three half-centuries along the way. His strike rate of 128.57, however, has been one of the main reasons for the criticism that he has faced this season.

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The PSL 2025 playoffs got underway on Wednesday with Quetta Gladiators, the team that had finished at the top of the six-team table, defeating Islamabad United by 30 runs in Qualifier 1. Defending champions Karachi Kings, meanwhile, are facing Lahore Qalandars in the Eliminator on Thursday.