Pakistan`s former captain and a member of the cricket board`s technical committee, Mohammad Hafeez, has called for supporting skipper Babar Azam and boosting his confidence ahead of next month`s World Cup in India. In an interaction with the media on Saturday, Hafeez, referring to the criticism about Babar`s captaincy, said the top batter alone could not be blamed for Pakistan`s defeats in the Asia Cup.

"It is not fair to just blame him for not reaching the Asia Cup final. We are not willing to give credit alone to the captain for reaching a final so why blame him alone for not reaching the Asia Cup final. Cricket is a team game," Hafeez said. He said right now the country`s cricket fraternity needs to support Babar and his team.