Former PCB chief Ramiz Raja slams management for breaking 'world-famous' T20I opening pair of Babar-Rizwan

Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja has criticised the management's decision to reshuffle their opening combination in T20Is. The duo of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have been working at the top of the order for years. However, in the ongoing five-match T20I series against New Zealand, they injected Saim Ayub in the opening role. 

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With over 2400 runs at an average of around 49, Babar and Rizwan have evolved into one of the most powerful and reliable opening pair in the history of the format. However, the decision to bring about a change could be their low scoring rate. Both are not destructive openers and for the same reason, their strike rate was at the bottom among T20I openers. 

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Raja questioned the reason behind changing the opening pair. The former Pakistan cricketer has hit out at the management's decision to break up the 'world famous' opening pair based on strike rate. 

"So much pressure was created to break the opening pair of Babar and Rizwan. After breaking the opening partnership, which was evaluated based on the strike rate. When you bring in new players, they may perform well in leagues, but international cricket is a different beast where there is pressure, and the focus of the entire world is on you. You broke the opening pair that was famous worldwide," said Raja. 

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It takes time to form an opening pair: Ramiz Raja

Babar batted at No.3 in the first three matches against New Zealand, with youngster Ayub partnering Rizwan at the top. Despite a quick-fire stand in the series opener (33 off 14 balls), the new pair struggled to find runs. In subsequent matches, their partnership was 8 and 23. 

"Either you have workshop of trained openers behind you who are gradually being introduced, when you have no other options. It takes time to form an opening pair. It's not an easy task. So, if you have a pair, and they consistently kept you in the field during matches, what benefit did you get after breaking it?," Raja added. 

Although it did not work out for Rizwan and his new partner, Babar managed to shine in his new position. The former skipper amassed a hat-trick of fifties in the series and is currently the second-ranked run scorer with 181 runs at an average of 60.33 and a strike rate of 157.39. However, Pakistan have already lost the series after losing the first three matches.