LAHORE:”Play the first and the last ball of a match” was the advice a15-year-old Babar Azam got from his club coach Mama Juna in Lahore and thatadvice Babar has learnt off by heart.Babar aims to be an epitome of performance in Pakistan’s wins.Since cracking three consecutive centuries against West Indiesin 2016 — just a year after his international baptism, Babar hasrisen to world number-one in the ICC’s T20I rankings, 18th in Testsand fifth in ODIs. Cricket pundits compare Babar to current world’sbest batsman Virat Kohli of India.Although comparisons are hazardous and Kohli currently has a far superiorrecord than his Pakistani counterpart yet, Babar’s stupendous start tointernational cricket hints he has the ability to match the Indiansuperstar, if not overtake him.For a fact, Babar has scored 1,000 and 2,000 ODI runs faster than Kohli. Hecompleted 1,000 in 21 innings and 2,000 in 45, as compared to Kohli’s 24and 53 innings, respectively. Babar also surpassed Kohli’s record offastest to 1,000 T20I runs — in 26 innings as compared to Kohli’s 27.Babar’s first 25 ODIs had five centuries to Kohli’s just two. But Kohli hassince achieved astronomical height and now has 39 ODI hundreds.Kohli was superior in his first 20 Tests, scoring 1,235 runs with fourhundreds and seven fifties as compared to Babar’s 1,165 with just onehundred but 11 half centuries.Babar feels proud at being compared to Kohli.”It’s flattering to be compared to Kohli,” said Babar on Thursday.He is very consistent and his mindset is very good, he gives 100 per centevery time he walks out to bat. I am at the start of my career, so the aimis to be like him and be the epitome of performance in each of Pakistan’swins,” says Babar.Just like every successful cricketer, Babar too has done his hard work withdiscipline and single-mindedness.”I was attracted to cricket at a very young age,” recalls Babar. “Myfather’s elder brother Akram Siddiq saw the passion of cricket in me, so hepushed me and then another uncle (father of Kamran, Umar and Adnan Akmal)advised my father to work hard on me as he thought that I will make it bigin cricket.”Babar would walk four miles in all weathers from his house to Gulberg inLahore, place the nets and would be the last to leave the ground. Hetopped the batting averages in all Under-15 cricket in Pakistan.That paved his way to Pakistan Under-19 team. Babar hit a century on hisICC U19 Cricket World Cup debut in New Zealand in 2010, against a WestIndian team which included current captain Jason Holder in the attack. Heaccumulated 298 runs – third most in the event.He led Pakistan to a quarter-final finish in the next event held inAustralia in 2012, finishing with 287 runs in six games, behind only toBangladesh’s Anumul Haque’s 365.Babar has become a batsman with discipline, good technique and one who, ashis coach advised, wants to be there throughout the innings. He iscurrently the top batsman in Twenty20 rankings and a prime reason forPakistan getting to the top of ICC’s T20I team rankings and winning 11consecutive series.The last four years have seen him mature as one of the top batsman inlimited-overs cricket and he is working hard to be the best in Test cricketas well.”I think he will be in the top five (batsmen) of the world very soon acrossall formats,” said Pakistan’s head coach Mickey Arthur.”I thought I was a bit quick off the gun when I said two years ago that hewould be almost as good as Kohli, but it has taken him a while to show thatclass.”But if you watched him in the nets couple of years ago, he was a young boywho has developed into a young man, he’s got stronger and fitter and hisgame get better and better all the time.”Babar wants to learn from his mistakes.”I keep learning from my mistakes and I take advice from my seniors AzharAli and Asad Shafiq because I want to be better and better in Test cricket,which is the test of skill, patience and fitness of a player.”The aim is to be the best for Pakistan across all formats,” he said.
Babar Azam: The Rise of a new cricket legend in Pakistan s history
