Ricky Ponting: “Babar Azam, he is technically a better player than Buttler”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Iconic Australia captain Ricky Ponting believes Pakistan skipper Babar Azam is better than England wicketkeeper-batsman Jos Buttler technique-wise.
Azam is regularly named as one of the most stylish players in the game today and many players, both current and former, have expressed their appreciation at how well he plays the cover drive in particular.
While Buttler does have the ability to play elegantly, he is more known for his power-hitting game. This is why Ponting feels that Azam is a step above him when it comes down to technique.
“Babar Azam, he is technically a better player than Buttler,” he said on The ICC Review as quoted by NDTV.
Azam is taking part in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) right now, where he is captaining the Peshawar Zalmi after being traded to them from the Karachi Kings in exchange for Haider Ali and Shoaib Malik.
The Zalmi started their PSL 8 campaign with a match against the Kings on February 14 in Karachi, which they won by two runs.
Azam played an instrumental role in the victory, smashing 68 runs off 46 balls, which included seven boundaries and a six.
The Zalmi’s next game will be against the Multan Sultans on February 17.
Peshawar Zalmi Squad for PSL 8:Â Babar Azam, Rovman Powell, Bhanuka Rajapaksa (Sri Lanka), Mujeeb Ur Rehman, Sherfane Rutherford, Wahab Riaz, Arshad Iqbal, Danish Aziz, Mohammad Haris, Aamer Jamal, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Saim Ayub, Salman Irshad, Usman Qadir, Haseebullah Khan, Sufyan Muqeem, James Neesham, Khurram Shahzad, Haris Sohail and Richard Gleeson