Pakistan’s all-format captain, Babar Azam, has witnessed a meteoric rise in international cricket ever since his debut 7 years ago. While Babar was always regarded as a talented cricketer, he established himself as one of the top batters in world cricket after consistent performances all over the world.
From the earlier stages of Babar’s career, he has been to legendary Indian batter, Virat Kohli. While fans drew comparisons between the two players, Babar was not too keen as he believed that Kohli had already achieved a lot while he had just begun his international career.
Back in 2017, Babar responded to the comparison between him and Kohli during a Question and Answer session on Twitter. Babar stated that while he is honored to be compared to Kohli, he wants the world to recognize him as Pakistan’s Babar Azam.
there is no comparison. @imVkohli is a great batsman and I am just a beginner. But I would like to be recalled as Babar Azam of Pakistan :) https://t.co/fqiF6ZKJ2J
— Babar Azam (@babarazam258) August 6, 2017
The tweet went viral again yesterday as Babar stunned the world when he was announced as 2022’s ODI player of the year and the cricketer of the year by the International Cricket Council (ICC). The cricketing fraternity reshared the tweet as they lauded Babar Azam for his hard work and determination to reach where he is today.
Babar, the number one ranked ODI batter, is among only a handful of players in world cricket to win the ODI player of the year on more than one occasion. This was his second ODI player of the year award in a row.
Previously, South Africa’s AB de Villiers, and Indian duo, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli, had won the coveted prize more than once. Babar will be determined to win his third consecutive award this year and equal De Villiers’ record of three awards.
