To Pakistan’s Enemies: “You Are About To See Something Very Special From Babar Azam.” —Matthew Hayden

Babar Azam performance in the 2017 T20 World Cup has been lacklustre, with his best score in the most recent five matches being 25 runs off 33 balls against Bangladesh.

Babar Azam is the fourth-highest run-scorer in T20 Internationals since the last World Cup, but he has failed to fire in the ongoing tournament. His best performance in the last five matches came against Bangladesh when he scored 25 runs off 33 balls. During the pre-match press conference prior to Wednesday’s semifinal versus New Zealand, Hayden said, “…don’t be surprised whatsoever if you don’t see any fireworks because extremely special players don’t often remain down for long.”

“There’s no denying the fact that Babar Azam has had to overcome a few obstacles in his life. This will not only make him an even more impressive player, but it will also… You cannot maintain your current pace of punching out hundreds and 50s while maintaining strike rates of more than 140.

“There has to be a lull here and there throughout the course of time. And as we are all aware, when there is a break in the weather, there is typically a storm that follows shortly afterward. Be on the lookout, people of the rest of the globe, because I believe that Babar has something extremely extraordinary in store for you.”

After suffering defeats at the hands of India and Zimbabwe, Pakistan appeared to be on the verge of elimination from the competition. However, the Netherlands’ shocking victory over South Africa opened the door for Pakistan, and they went on to win their final Super 12 match to secure a spot in the semifinals.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way because in the last World Cup we went into the semi-final undefeated, and Australia beat us,” Hayden said. “It has been a rollercoaster ride, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.” “So, certainly, there are highs and lows during this competition, but I honestly believe that we are yet with our best game, which poses a significant danger to our competitors.

“The manner in which the middle order has stepped up to the plate has been outstanding,” said the bowling coach, “and those fast bowlers, man, there’s four of them, and they come at great pace.” Hayden was impressed with how the middle order contributed to the team’s cause, despite the fact that the top of the order, which includes Babar and his opening partner Mohammad Rizwan, has struggled.

Mohammad Haris scored 59 runs in two innings, and the former Australian opening batsman singled out his role to the team’s success.

“Despite the fact that everything hasn’t gone according to plan with the batting, it has forced our middle order players to step up, and young Haris has been one of those,” the captain said.

“Amazing narrative, and one of the most important stories of any World Cup. Not even on the team, but he’s already excelling at a level that suggests he should have been from the beginning. Hayden believes that Haris’s practise matches against the pacers were beneficial.

“It shouldn’t come as a surprise to see how he fit in and how brilliantly he performed. On our fast and bouncy wickets, he has a really good technique, which is evident. “He’s got a vibrancy,” was what he said about him.

“One of the things that I saw as an outsider coming into this tournament is that virtually the entire cricketing community is exhausted to some degree due to the quantity of programming that has been going on.”

“So to have a young, fresh face with nothing to lose, nothing really to gain, but just play with great freedom has been a wonderful expression for him personally as well as for team Pakistan,” said the commentator. “So to have a young, fresh face with nothing to lose, nothing really to gain, but just play with great freedom has been Hayden, in discussing Pakistan’s opponent in the semifinals, stated that New Zealand will provide a number of dangers for Pakistan.

“I believe that New Zealand had some pretty destructive players, and with the bat, you can put yourself under pressure…

They also have an outstanding bowling attack that is quite evenly distributed throughout their lineup. “Good variety of experience,” the older man (now 51) commented.

I even competed against Tim Southee, which should give you some idea of the level of experience the squad possesses… Lockie Ferguson possesses excellent pace and a plenty of experience playing Twenty20 cricket, making him a formidable opponent. In addition to that, they bowl well when the pace slows down.

They truly punch above their weight, just like New Zealand sports in general, in my opinion. They are confident in their ability to triumph in this competition, and they have the resources necessary to achieve so. There are undoubtedly a great number of dangers facing our camp.”