Babar Azam's poor form in Tests continued after he fell for a duck in the first innings of the opening match against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi on Wednesday, August 21. Pakistan witnessed an embarrassing collapse after being forced to bat first at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium as Bangladesh pacers dominated the early stages.
Babar walked in to bat early after Pakistan lost Abdullah Shafique and skipper Shan Masood inside the first seven overs. Facing his only second delivery, Babar threw away his wicket after trying to play Soriful Islam's short delivery down the leg but a thick inside edge found the wicketkeeper batter Litton Das who clinched an excellent diving catch to stun the former captain and home crowd.
The 29-year-old Babar registered his first-ever duck against Bangladesh in Tests against whom he holds an impressive record. Babar also recorded his first-ever duck in Tests at home and eighth overall as he suffered a poor start to the two-match series.
Babar is currently ranked third in the ICC men's Test batting rankings but has struggled for performances in 2024. He failed to register a single fifty-plus score in six innings against Australia in the previous Test series in December-January with 126 runs at an average of 21.00.
The white-ball team captain last scored a Test century against New Zealand in December 2022. He hasn't scored a half-century in his last 13 Test innings but still boasts impressive numbers with 3898 runs at an average of 45.85 with nine centuries. Babar's poor form also reflects on Pakistan's sixth position in the World Test Championship table.
Meanwhile, Pakistan stumbled to 16 for three after Babar's dismissal as Bangladesh bowlers dominated the early stages. Opener Saim Ayub and in-form Saud Shakeel then added an unbeaten 35 runs for the fourth wicket to steady Pakistan's innings and boost the innings total to 51/3 in 14 overs.
