India, March 20 -- Babar Azam has found himself as a focus of criticism surrounding Pakistan cricket, with his ongoing struggles and lack of match-defining big scores creating a long barren spell for a player who was considered one of the best batters in the world not too long ago.

Babar's rotten run of form has extended to the domestic National T20 Cup in Pakistan, where he chewed up 17 deliveries but only managed 22 runs for the Lahore Blues, in a chase of 172 against Karachi Whites. Babar has particularly received criticism for his middling strike-rate.

Reflecting on the Pakistan batters struggles in recent times, particularly with losing his wicket and getting stuck against spin, Babar's cousin and former national teammate Umar Akma...