Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram has said Babar Azam should not have accepted the Test captaincy for Pakistan's tours of the West Indies and England earlier this year, arguing the batter would have been better served staying on purely as a player.
Akram made the comments while speaking alongside former pace bowler Waqar Younis at a charity fundraising event in Manchester. "I do not want to blame anyone, and I could be wrong as well," Akram said, according to Geo News. "But in my opinion, Babar should not have taken the captaincy. All of this was unnecessary."
What Akram was reacting to
Akram's remarks centre on an exchange at the toss before the third and final Test in Birmingham, when Babar was asked about the Pakistan Cricket Board's decision to send seven players and two coaches home mid-series. Babar told reporters he had not been informed of the changes in advance.
Referring to that moment, Akram was sharply critical of Babar's response. "Babar Azam said he did not know. If you don't know, then what were you doing here? Were you here to sell chickpeas?" he said, per Geo News. Akram argued that a captain needs the visible backing of his board to lead effectively, adding that a player "cannot give 100 percent" if he feels his leadership is not being supported. He said Babar should have offered to continue as a player only once the changes were made after the second Test.
The tour that triggered the overhaul
Pakistan lost all three Tests of the England series: by an innings and 103 runs at Headingley, by 194 runs at Lord's, and by eight wickets at Edgbaston. After the Lord's defeat left the tourists 2-0 down, the PCB released seven players from the squad and replaced head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul, with white-ball coach Mike Hesson taking over the red-ball side for the final Test, according to Gulf News.
Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman, Aamer Jamal, Awais Zafar and Khurram Shahzad were among those sent home. Pakistan's batting improved in the final Test, where Babar scored 76 and Shan Masood 95 as the side posted 449 in its second innings, but it was not enough to avoid the whitewash.
Speaking after the series ended, Babar said the team would review its Test setup. "I think we need to sit down and reflect on our mistakes, decide what type of playing eleven, and decide our players," he said, according to Gulf News. He did not specify whether the review would extend to the captaincy itself.
Babar's third stint as Test captain
Babar was reappointed Pakistan's Test captain on July 5, 2026, replacing Shan Masood ahead of the tours of the West Indies and England, according to WION. Selector Aaqib Javed said at the time that the panel felt Masood "could not lead as desired" and that Babar was "the best option." It marked Babar's third time leading Pakistan's Test side; he first held the role from 2020 to 2023, a stretch of 20 Tests in which Pakistan won 10, lost 6 and drew 4. Masood's tenure, which began in December 2023, produced 4 wins in 16 Tests.
What remains unresolved
Neither Babar nor the PCB has publicly responded to Akram's comments so far. Whether the review Babar referred to after the England series will address the Test captaincy specifically has also not been confirmed by the board.
