Ricky Ponting: “Technically, he’s very good”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Legendary Australia captain Ricky Ponting said Pakistan skipper Babar Azam shows off great technique whenever he bats.
Azam is Pakistan’s most consistent run-scorer in all three formats and has continued that trend this year.
In the three-match Test series against England, he made 348 runs, which included a century and three fifties, at an average of 58.
He then proceeded to score 226 runs in two Tests against New Zealand, which included a top score of 161, at an average of 56.50.
The 28-year-old finished off with 149 runs in three ODIs against the Black Caps, which included two fifties, at an average of 49.66.
He continued his red-hot run of form in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), where he captained the Peshawar Zalmi.
Azam was the second-highest run-scorer with 522 runs in 11 matches, which included a century and five fifties, at an average of 52.20 and a strike-rate of 145.40.
“Technically, he’s very good,” Ponting said while speaking on The ICC Review.
Pakistan were recently beaten 2-1 in the three T20Is they played against Afghanistan, but Azam was rested for the series.
He is now involved in the five-match T20I series against New Zealand, where he has scored 111 runs, which includes a century, at an average of 55.50 and a strike-rate of 156.33.
Pakistan are 2-1 up in the series going into the fifth match on Monday in Rawalpindi.
Pakistan squad for T20I series against New Zealand: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood and Zaman Khan
Pakistan squad for ODI series against New Zealand: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haris Sohail, Ihsanullah, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood and Usama Mir