“Babar Azam’s English isn’t great” - Herschelle Gibbs outlines the problem of the Pakistan batter

Former Pakistan Super League (PSL) team Karachi Kings coach Herschelle Gibbs has discussed the difficulties of managing ace batter Babar Azam before the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.

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The former Proteas opener claimed that there is a linguistic barrier, and the former Pakistan skipper is hesitant to change his game.

Babar Azam departed for 10 (23) and 23 (19) while opening in the first two ODIs of the present tri-series against New Zealand and South Africa, respectively.

The Lahore batsman would be eager to turn things around ahead of the Champions Trophy. Pakistan's campaign against New Zealand will begin in Karachi on February 19. They will meet the same opponent in the ODI tri-series final at the same venue on Friday, February 14.

Herschelle Gibbs opens up about issues with Babar Azam

South African veteran Herschelle Gibbs, who worked closely with Babar Azam during the PSL, acknowledged a language problem with the Pakistani batsman. He claimed the Pakistani star batter's poor English impedes proper communication.

After watching the Pakistan batter’s struggle, a user wrote on X, “Hey Gibbs, how about giving some suggestions to Babar Azam like you did back in 2021/2022 during PSL with Karachi Kings? I guess he won’t deny your interference this time.”

In response, Herschelle Gibbs said, “Language is an issue with Babar… As you know, his English isn’t great, so it’s difficult to get points across to him.”

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Herschelle Gibbs suggested Babar Azam, back in 2022, to add a few offensive strokes to help him improve his strike rate. Later in 2023, Gibbs chastised Azam for being lethargic in a 400-plus chase against New Zealand in the ODI World Cup. 

The comments came while Babar Azam was on 66 runs off 63 balls. The right-handed hitter served as an anchor, with Fakhar Zaman playing aggressively. The latter scored an undefeated 126 off 81 deliveries as the Men in Green won by 21 runs using the DLS method.

Coming to Babar, he has suffered a decline in the ODI format, despite being the No. 1 ranked batter in the ICC Rankings. It all began in the 2023 Asia Cup, where he performed admirably but not at his typical level. His average dropped significantly, and his run-making skills, for which Babar is famous, waned as he struggled to convert strong starts into large scores.

However, all eyes are now focused on the upcoming Champions Trophy. The good news is that Pakistan will play at home, with the exception of the match versus India, which will be held in Dubai.

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