Former Pakistan cricketer Aaqib Javed has compared his countrymate Babar Azam with the likes of Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar. Aaqib is someone who makes controversial comments but his latest statements have certainly breached the boundaries.
Babar Azam – Virat Kohli comparisons are here to stay
Babar Azam is Pakistan’s batting mainstay and has often triggered comparisons with Virat Kohli. Although Virat has the better stats, Babar is much younger and is surely catching up. Recently, he became the quickest to get to 13 ODI centuries.
Aaqib compares the player’s techniques
He said: “Virat Kohli has a better range as compared to Babar Azam but he also has one area of weakness. If the ball swings, he tends to get trapped around the off-stump such as against James Anderson in England.”
He even compared Azam to Sachin Tendulkar. He told: “When you look at Babar, you don’t see any weak areas. Just like, Sachin Tendulkar who also didn’t have any weak areas. Babar is technically more safe and sound but if he follows Kohli’s fitness routine he will become an even better player. Meanwhile, Kohli can improve his technique by looking at Babar so that he doesn’t get trapped.“
The former player talked about Babar’s consistency as well
Aaqib opined: “During the past two or three years, Babar Azam is 50 per cent of Pakistan’s batting. I never thought that he would be this consistent and even go past Virat Kohli in ODI rankings. Pakistan is very lucky; he came when the team was struggling and has single-handedly put the team on the right track. Even, captaincy hasn’t affected his form.“
Source: Hindustan Times
