(Image Source: AP)
[Saba Sports News] Cricket Victoria’s CEO Nick Cummins has refuted allegations of offering a Sheffield Shield contract and a long-term opportunity in the Big Bash League (BBL) to Babar Azam, former captain of the Pakistan cricket team. Recent reports had indicated that Babar Azam was approached by Cricket Victoria for a domestic contract, but Cummins labeled these reports as baseless.
A social media post by ‘Zake’ claimed that Cricket Victoria approached Babar Azam to play in the Sheffield Shield and the BBL for either Melbourne Renegades or Melbourne Stars, and that Babar would decide based on the Pakistan Cricket Team’s schedule from September 2024 to January 2025. However, this claim has been denied by Cummins.
Babar Azam, who has not previously participated in Australia’s Sheffield Shield, has played in the County Championship for Somerset in 2019 and 2020. In his first season, he scored 40 runs over two innings in one game. During the next domestic season, he played in the T20 Blast, scoring 218 runs at an average of 36.33, including a century.
In other news, Babar Azam’s performance in a recent T20I match was noteworthy but could not prevent Pakistan’s defeat. On January 12, Pakistan lost to New Zealand by 46 runs in Auckland, despite Babar’s half-century. Under Shaheen Afridi’s captaincy, Pakistan chose to field first in the opening match of the five-match series.
New Zealand set a challenging total of 226, with Shaheen and Abbas Afridi taking three wickets each. Babar scored a valiant 57 off 35 balls, but Pakistan was all out for 180 in 18 overs, enabling New Zealand to take a 1-0 series lead.