Misbah-ul-Haq highlights reason behind New Zealand thrashing

Pakistan head coach Misbah-ul-Haq believes that absence of captain Babar Azam was one of the primary reason for the team’s poor performances in the recently concluded New Zealand tour.

The Men in Green suffered four defeats in five matches against the Black Caps which included an innings and 175-run defeat in the second Test.

Misbah, while talking to the media in Lahore on Monday, believes that the Kiwis were the better team but the absence of star batsman and captain affected the team’s morale.

“Babar Azam’s injury was a big issue for us,” he said. “It was a big loss for us especially in Test cricket. We were affected morally and on the field due to this setback. We should accept that the opposition were better than us in all three departments. They have been playing good cricket for past couple of years.”

Babar could not play a single match on the tour after suffering a thumb fracture during training before the first match of the T20I series.