It has been a tough couple of years for Pakistan cricket team batter Babar Azam. Who was once rated as one of the top batters in the world, has been struggling to score runs in all three formats and his poor show in ICC competitions has resulted in massive criticism from both fans as well as experts.
The star batter was even dropped from the Pakistan side following their dismal Champions Trophy campaign. However, Pakistan Super League (PSL) side Karachi Kings owner Salman Iqbal has backed Babar to bounce back and become a bigger cricketer than Virat Kohli. Iqbal went on to say that Babar may ended up matching legends like Sir Viv Richards and Sir Garfield Sobers, reports NDTV.
“I am telling you. Mark my words, when Babar Azam makes a comeback again, he will be a bigger player than any other player in the world, including Virat Kohli. He will be matched with names like Garry Sobers and Sir Viv Richards,” Iqbal said on ARY Podcast.
“He has that class element. When someone has class…. Class is permanent, you can't change that. Style is always permanent. He will come back…he will come back with a bang,” he added.
After Babar Azam's flop show with the bat continued in the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL), former cricketer Basit Ali has urged Pakistan's premier to learn from India's stalwart Virat Kohli
Babar, who is leading Peshawar Zalmi in PSL, has continued to labour for runs after his dry spell in international cricket. Since his 151-run blitzkrieg against Nepal in 2023, Babar is yet to score a century for Pakistan. Even his lack of form has started to affect his captaincy. With Babar at the helm, Zalmi have endured two emphatic defeats on the trot.
With Zalmi struggling as a unit, Babar's individual struggle has added to their increasing woes. During Zalmi's recent 102-run hammering at the hands of Islamabad United, Babar was a no-show in their pursuit of a mammoth 244-run target.
Basit launched a scathing tirade on Babar for his captaincy debacle in the ongoing PSL. He urged Babar to drop captaincy and focus on his game. To make his case, he even cited Virat's example, who retired from T20Is last year and has taken a step back from Royal Challengers Bengaluru captaincy in the IPL to focus on his cricket.
The 54-year-old urged Babar to learn from the Indian batting maestro and said on his YouTube channel, "Babar should leave captaincy and focus on his cricket. While chasing a 240-plus target, he gave away a catch to slip and got out. He is not focused. Zalmi management should remove him from captaincy and play him as a batter. He is harming himself. Babar is not doing anything; he just keeps playing."
"I will give the example of Virat Kohli. He retired from T20Is, and he is not even the captain of RCB. If you follow him, then learn something from him. You should play as a batter," he added.
Bd-pratidin English/Tanvir Raihan
