The former skipper supports Babar Azam

Former Pakistan captain Saleem Malik backed incumbent skipper Babar Azam, saying he should be given enough time to prove his captaincy.

Babar, who received criticism for his captaincy, has received support from several former and current players. He currently leads the Men in Green in all formats of the game.

Babar Azam is a young captain and you cannot learn the art of captaincy in one day, Malik told local media in Lahore in support of the 28-year-old cricketer.

Azam is a household name in Pakistan cricket and should be given a full chance to prove himself. This is also important for making a good Pakistan team.

If Babar makes mistakes, we should guide him instead of criticizing him unnecessarily.

He also praised opener Fakhar Zaman, who smashed a third consecutive century to guide Pakistan to a seven-wicket win over New Zealand in the second ODI of the five-match series on Saturday.

Fakhar Zaman played really well and that is exactly why I have always said that he should be a permanent member of our playing XI, he said.

The final three matches of the ODI series, which Pakistan lead 2-0, are in Karachi on May 3, 5 and 7.

The Rawalpindi pitches were conducive to batting, but I don’t think the same can be said of the Karachi surface. Spinners will play a crucial role in Karachi and I don’t think we will see big scores,” said Malik.

The 60-year-old also hoped that Pakistan would put up a good show in this year’s International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup in India.

We are playing good cricket at the moment and I am hopeful that we can continue that and win the World Cup,” he concluded.