Mount Maunganui (New Zealand): Pakistan captain Babar Azam has been cleared to play in the second Test against New Zealand on Sunday, but not yet confirmed.
“He has batted very well in the nets and he’s fine now but he wants to hit some more today and we’ll find out tomorrow,” said Mohammad Rizwan, who captained the side in the first Test.
Babar has not played on the tour since breaking a thumb during a practice session after completing their Covid-enforced 14-day quarantine on arrival in New Zealand.
Rizwan described Babar as Pakistan’s Kane Williamson, the New Zealand captain whose first-innings century laid the foundation for their 101-run victory in the first Test.
“He’s cleared but he wants to take some more time. If he plays he has a great impact on our team. Williamson batted very solid … Babar Azam has the same role in our team. The result may have been different if Babar was playing.”
New Zealand won the first Test with 27 balls to spare and Williamson acknowledged Azam would have strengthened Pakistan.
“He’s one of the best players in the world. He obviously adds a lot,” Williamson said. “We saw how challenging it is against this Pakistan side. You add Babar to that and it strengthens it.”
New Zealand need to win the second Test to have a chance of making the World Test Championship final at Lords in June.
