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Pakistan National Cricket Team wicketkeeper-batter Azam Khan has made a shocking revelation about the behaviour of fans on social media. Pakistan cricket's online fan culture has been openly slammed by Azam Khan, who has labelled Babar Azam's fanbase as toxic.
Azam shared his personal experience of facing online abuse and explained how some fans cross all limits while supporting their favourite players. Read Also: Pakistan players' participation in Abu Dhabi T10 in doubt as PCB demands $10,000 per player for NOCs.
During his recent appearance on the Backward Point Cricket Podcast, Azam Khan recalled an incident from Pakistan's tour of Ireland, where he was batting alongside Babar Azam. At that time, Babar was batting around 75 runs, while Pakistan needed around 40 more runs to win the match.
He revealed that someone commented on his Instagram picture and threatened his family with serious harm if he stopped Babar from completing his century. The incident left Azam shocked as he exposed the extreme behaviour of some fans on social media.
Azam Khan said on the podcast, "It's very bad, bro. You know, one of Babar's fans, I was batting with him in Ireland, and he was at 75 or something, and we needed 40 runs. And somebody commented on my Instagram picture that if you stop Babar's century, your mom will die and your dad will get cancer, something like that, bro. So, our cricketers have such an ignorant fan base.”
The wicketkeeper-batter also defended Babar amid his struggles across the formats. He stressed that there is not any issue in Babar’s game and he can make a strong comeback, but his toxic fan base is making things tough for the former Pakistan captain.
He said, "There's nothing wrong with Babar and his game, but his fan base is very toxic. I mean, when you see those things, you'll be like, Bro, why would he even say that?”
ہمارا سوشل میڈیا بہت گندہ ہے،، ہمارے کرکٹرز کے فینز انتہائی جاہل ہیں، اعظم خان نے بابر اعظم اور ان پر ہونے والی تنقید پر ایک پوڈکاسٹ میں گفتگو https://t.co/HcSGxtpUON
— Shakeel Khan Khattak (@ShakeelktkKhan) November 5, 2026
Azam also spoke about his approach towards social media criticism as he revealed that he no longer keeps his Instagram comments restricted.
He explained that Pakistani cricketers have already gone through a difficult couple of years, and online criticism does not affect him as much as it had earlier. Read Also: Gurnoor Brar opens up on war of words with Blair Tickner during IND vs NZ 1st ODI.
He shared, “No, no, no. Not anymore. I'm like, Bro, whoever wants to do it, they've been going through such a tight two years that whatever you guys say. So, these things do not matter now.”
The Pakistani cricketer also took a strong dig at people who question his fitness and cricketing skills. He pointed towards Pakistan's disappointing batting performance against India, where the team failed to chase a target of just 120 runs in the 2024 T20 World Cup match in New York.
In that match, Pakistan were in a strong position after bowling India out for just 119 runs. They needed only 48 runs from the last eight overs, with eight wickets still in hand. However, Jasprit Bumrah turned the game around with a superb bowling performance.
He picked up three wickets for just 14 runs, helping India trigger a dramatic Pakistan collapse as they finished at 113/7 in their 20 overs. Azam signed off by saying, “All your fittest players didn't do anything either. You couldn't even chase 120 runs, yet you're talking about fitness and skills?”