Pakistan cricket team captain Babar Azam has refused to share details of his conversation with Indian skipper Virat Kohli during the India-Pakistan T20 World Cup clash.
The Pakistani captain was addressing a pre-match virtual press conference ahead of Pakistan’s T20 series against the West Indies.
A reporter asked Babar about various videos doing the rounds on the internet in which he and Kohli can be seen discussing during the highly-charged World Cup clash.
Babar, however, refused to share what the two discussed.
“[…] cannot reveal the discussion with Virat Kohli in front of everyone,” Babar responded.
Replying to a question, Babar once again raised the issue of the absence of permanent coaches for the Men in Green, saying the team must have batting and bowling coaches.
He said that having people in the management team was as important as having players in the squad.
The skipper hoped Pakistan will carry forward their T20 World Cup momentum against the West Indies.
He said that he keeps in touch with Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Ramiz Raja over matters related to cricket.
He lavished praise on the West Indies for coming to Pakistan’s aid, saying that it was crucial for them to tour Pakistan after New Zealand suddenly withdrew from a Pakistan series in October.
“The West Indies have stood by us during difficult times. There was a time when everyone was wondering whether any other team would visit the country or not [after New Zealand’s pullout],” said Babar.
Babar said that some of the West Indies players have not arrived in Pakistan to play the series. However, he said no team can be taken lightly in the white-ball series.
He expressed the hope that the team would keep winning momentum going against a virus-hit West Indies in the limited-overs series, starting tomorrow (Monday).
Three West Indies players — left-arm fast bowler Sheldon Cottrell, all-rounders Roston Chase and Kyle Mayers — have tested positive for coronavirus in Karachi and were ruled out of the Twenty20 series. They will be in isolation for 10 days in Karachi and will be monitored by the team physician until they return negative tests.
West Indies Twenty20 squad already miss several top performers for the three-match Twenty20 series which will be followed by three ODIs — also at Karachi. The three T20Is will be played on December 13, 14 and 16, while the ODIs will take place on Dec 18, 20 and 22.
The notable absentees include white-ball skipper Kieron Pollard, who will miss out due to hamstring injury he sustained during the T20 World Cup, while Andre Russell is playing in the Big Bash League in Australia.
“We will try to carry the momentum which started in the (T20) World Cup,” Babar told reporters during a video conference on Sunday.
“We are not going to take them (West Indies) easy because they didn’t bring their best players. They have played in the CPL (Caribbean Premier League) and international games, so you have to give your 100 per cent to beat them.”
