Wasim Akram: “He is the best player we have”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Wasim Akram, the legendary fast bowler, chose captain Babar Azam as Pakistan’s best player due to the fact that he is known to be a must-see match-winner.
Azam never lets the team down as he has, on countless occasions, single-handedly carried the men in green to victory.
Knowing the incredible amount of talent the 28-year-old possesses, Wasim admitted that Azam is truly Pakistan’s number one cricketer.
“He is the best player we have,” the Sultan of Swing told the International Cricket Council (ICC).
Azam has done well with the bat over the past few months as he scored 76 runs in two Tests against Sri Lanka at an average of 25.33.
He then struck 113 runs in three ODIs against Afghanistan, which included two fifties, at an average of 37.66.
Recently, he was in action in the Asia Cup and accumulated 207 runs in five matches, which included a top score of 151, at an average of 51.75.
Pakistan were in good form in the tournament as they started off with a convincing 238-run win over Nepal before sharing one point apiece with India after their match was rained off.
Despite this, the men in green made it through to the Super Four stage and continued to impress as they easily brushed aside Bangladesh by seven wickets.
However, their momentum was halted when India demolished them by 228 runs.
Pakistan had the opportunity to make it to the Asia Cup final in their match against Sri Lanka on September 14, but they were unable to get the job done as they lost by two wickets via the Duckworth–Lewis–Stern method (DLS) method.
Pakistan Squad for 2023 Asia Cup: Babar Azam (capt), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Haris (wk), Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Shahnawaz Dahani, Zaman Khan.
Travelling reserve: Tayyab Tahir