Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson has confirmed that Babar Azam will make his return to T20I cricket batting at the number three spot in the upcoming three-match series against South Africa. This will be Babars first T20I appearance since December 2024. Hesson shared the update during a press interaction at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium while the team was training. The move comes after opener Fakhar Zaman took a short break from T20 cricket to concentrate on playing domestic matches. What were Pakistans head coach Mike Hessons statements? I certainly endorse his selection with Fakhar Zaman sent to first-class cricket. Weve had a conversation with him and he wants to come back into the One-Day scene so weve given him a bit of a break from T20Is to get his technique back to where he wants to be and Ive been really supportive of that Hesson shared with GeoSuper. That created an opportunity for another top-order player and its a great opportunity to get Babar back into the squad. Hes likely to bat at three so its a role that Im very confident hell be able to do well in Hesson added. What are Babar Azams stats? Babar Azam last played a T20I match against South Africa. The 31-year-old has played 128 T20I games scoring 4223 runs at an average of 39.84 with a strike rate of 129.23. In his T20I career he has scored 36 fifties and three hundreds. His top score of 122 came against South Africa in Centurion in 2021. Specifically against South Africa Babar has an average of 34.38 from 13 innings with a strike rate of 141.45 which is his highest strike rate against any Test-playing team in T20Is.