Azhar Ali: “Babar is the first player after Shahid bhai who has captured the attention of the world, including in India. A conventional batter getting such applause is rare”

Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani

Former Pakistan captain Azhar Ali said batsman Babar Azam is getting as much as attention as legendary big-hitting all-rounder Shahid Afridi.

He noted that having a Pakistan player getting so much fanfare, including from fans in India, is extremely rare.

Azam has long been Pakistan’s best batsman in all three formats of the game and has repeatedly won matches for the men in green on his own.

“Babar is the first player after Shahid bhai who has captured the attention of the world, including in India. A conventional batter getting such applause is rare,” Azhar was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.

Azam was recently involved in Pakistan’s tour of South Africa and began by scoring 31 runs in two T20Is at an average of 15.50.

He then proceeded to make 148 runs in three ODIs, which included two fifties, at an average of 49.33.

As for the two-Test series, the 30-year-old finished with 193 runs, which included three half-centuries, at an average of 48.25.

Azam couldn’t do well as he would have liked in the two-Test series against the West Indies as he only managed to muster 45 runs at an average of 11.25.

He will no doubt be looking to get back in form in the ODI tri-series against New Zealand and South Africa as it precedes the 2025 Champions Trophy, which will be played from February 19 to March 9.

Pakistan Squad for 2025 Champions Trophy: Mohammad Rizwan (captain and wicketkeeper), Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah

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