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Journalism of Courage
This is an archive article published on May 18, 2020
‘I’m a cricketer, not a gora’: Babar Azam hits back at English-speaking criticism
Pakistan skipper Babar Azam emphasised that his job was to play cricket and he was not 'a gora' who needs to know the English language completely.
Babar Azam replies to Tanvir Ahmed’s remarks (Source: Youtube screengrab & Reuters)
Babar Azam, Pakistan’s newly-appointed ODI captain, did not mince words in a response to former cricketer Tanvir Ahmed’s suggestion on improving his English speaking skills.
Cricketers from Pakistan including former skipper Sarfraz Ahmed have often been trolled for their weak English language speaking skills in the post-match press conferences and presentations. So Ahmed in a Youtube video had advised Azam to improve his overall personality and learn English to cope with the problem.
“Babar Azam also needs to improve his English, which is necessary. Whenever someone becomes a captain, he has to talk during the toss and post-match presentation. Plus, he will also give interviews on various channels when he tours different countries,” Tanvir said.
The 41-year-old, who had represented Pakistan in 5 Tests, 2 ODIs and 1 T20I, then faced flak on social media for his controversial comments.
Tanvir Ahmed via Youtube says Babar Azam needs to improve his English, work on his personality and change his dress sense”
However many probably will feel as long as he’s scoring runs and doing well as skipper, it doesn’t matter how good his English is or what he wears”#Cricket pic.twitter.com/mDfNl5DwEl
— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) May 17, 2020
Azam responded to the remark in a video which was widely shared on social media and said, “I’m a cricketer, my job is to play cricket. I am not a ‘gora,’ who knows English completely.”
“Yes, I am working on it, but you learn these things over a period of time, you can’t just suddenly learn it.”
READ | ‘We are different from each other’: Babar Azam on Kohli comparisons
Babar Azam about his Comparison with Virat Kohli & Solid Cover drive (reply) about criticism on his English (Language)
Well played 👌
Video via PCB pic.twitter.com/ntzxioxgSi
— Abdul Ghaffar (@GhaffarDawnNews) May 18, 2020
The Lahore-born cricketer also talked about cricket after the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We know better than other teams how it feels to play without a crowd having played most of our cricket in Dubai in last 10 years,” he said.
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“It’s not a great feeling for fans and it’s not great for us also,” he concluded.
READ | Gautam Gambhir lashes out at Afridi over Kashmir remarks
READ | ‘Afridi has crossed all limits, no further relations’: Harbhajan Singh
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