Babar Azam during the 2023 World Cup in India (AP)
Pakistan batting luminary Babar Azam has personified finesse with his graceful stroke-play and unwavering consistency on the international stage. Widely revered as one of the stalwarts of modern-day batsmanship, his mastery has firmly inscribed him as a pivotal force in Pakistan’s cricketing echelons.
Making his debut in 2015, the cricketer steadily etched his mark in Pakistan’s coloured clothing before becoming a linchpin of their famed batting line-up across all formats.
Babar Azam’s Early Career
Born in October 1994 and emboldened by older cousins Kamran Akmal and Umar Akmal, Babar Azam took up cricket as his primary profession and commenced his journey as a ball boy at the Gaddafi Stadium. The then teenager soon joined a cricket academy where his impressive run earned him one of the slots in Pakistan’s Under-19 setup.
After toiling away for nearly five years in domestic cricket, turning up for teams like Zarai Taraqiati Bank, Islamabad Leopards, and State Bank of Pakistan, Babar Azam received his maiden international cap in May 2015 at Lahore. Notably, according to Babar Azam stats, his debut in ODI cricket was marked by a crafty half-century against Zimbabwe in May 2015 at Lahore.
Six months later, he unfurled his maiden 50-plus score in a winning cause by scoring an unbeaten run-a-ball 62 against England in the UAE. This early display of his match-winning capabilities signaled the emergence of Babar's white-ball excellence with the bat.
Babar Azam with Mohammad Hafeez during 2017 Champions Trophy (x.com)
Babar Azam Test Career
Babar Azam made his Test debut with a match against West Indies in Dubai in October 2016, a couple of days prior to his 22nd birthday. While the prodigious batting talent scored 69 in his first innings, he underwent a major slump in his early Test profile, scoring just two half-centuries in his subsequent 15 outings with the bat. During this period, he also recorded twin ducks within a single match against West Indies at Kensington Oval.
His career-defining innings came against New Zealand in November 2018 in Dubai, where he scored an unbeaten 127 to headline Pakistan’s one-sided win. After his average had dipped below 30 by the end of his 15th Test appearance, it gradually gained momentum following his Dubai epic to solidify himself as an all-format modern-day great.
Babar Azam ODI Career
Babar Azam entered the 2019 World Cup off the back of his 277-run series tally against England. The star middle-order batter sustained his golden touch with the bat by scoring a match-winning century against New Zealand. He eventually ended his maiden World Cup edition with 474 runs to his name, thus surpassing Javed Miandad’s record of scoring the highest number of runs in a single edition of the tournament in Pakistan’s cricket history.
Babar Azam entered the 2019 World Cup [x.com]
Completely disregarding opposition’s stature, Babar scored runs across all surfaces, regardless of the playing conditions on offer. He mauled Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe at home, thumped South Africa in an away series with 228 runs from just three matches in April 2021, and registered his career-best format score of 158 against England at Edgbaston later that same year.
However, Babar failed to replicate his batting success at the 2023 ICC World Cup in India, where he returned with a below-par tournament haul of just 320 runs from nine innings, at a substandard average of 40.
Babar Azam T20I Career
Babar Azam made his T20I debut with an away match against England at Manchester in September 2016. In the second match of his career later in the same month, the ‘Men in Green’ star tallied a well-compiled 55 against West Indies in Dubai to register his maiden half-century in the format.
The cricketer also minted 179 runs in just three innings for Pakistan against ICC World XI in September 2017. Babar missed his maiden T20I ton by a whisker against West Indies in 2018, where he scored a match-winning 97* from just 58 balls at Karachi. For his stellar records with the bat, the cricketer achieved the number one ranking on ICC T20I batting charts for the first time in his career in late 2018.
Apart from number one rankings, he reached an all-time high in his T20I career during the 2021 T20 World Cup in UAE, where the batting veteran led Pakistan to a historic win over India, their first against them in any World Cup game. On top of it all, the legendary right-hander also finished the tournament with 303 runs to his name.
Babar Azam PSL Career
Apart from dominating the T20I batting charts, Babar Azam is also at the top of the run-scoring pile in Pakistan Super League (PSL) matches. With nearly 3,000 career runs to his name, he led second-placed Fakhar Zaman by a staggering gap of more than 500 runs by the conclusion of the 2023 season of the tournament.
Turning up for Islamabad United in his maiden PSL outing in 2016, the cricketer was roped in by the Karachi Kings franchise in 2017. He spent six seasons at the Karachi camp, before eventually joining the Peshawar Zalmi team as their captain from 2023 onwards for a fresh PSL stint.
Babar Azam career: Frequently Asked Questions
Q: When did Babar Azam made his international debut for Pakistan?
A: Babar Azam made his international debut for Pakistan through an ODI match against Zimbabwe at Lahore on May 31, 2015. The then 20-year-old scored 54 runs in his maiden innings.
Q: When was Babar Azam appointed as captain of the Pakistan cricket team?
A: Babar Azam was appointed as Pakistan’s T20I captain in October 2019 ahead of their away series against Australia. The cricketer was also handed team’s ODI and Test leadership roles the following year, in May 2020 and November 2020 respectively.
Q: Is Babar Azam the first Pakistani captain to defeat India in a World Cup match?
A: Yes. Babar Azam led Pakistan to their first-ever victory over arch-rivals India in any World Cup game during their 2021 T20 World Cup duel in Dubai.
Q: Has Babar Azam ever won an ICC Award in his career?
A: Babar Azam won the ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year awards in 2021 and 2022, and was also adjudged as the ICC Cricketer of the Year in 2022.
Q: Which franchises has Babar Azam played for in Pakistan Super League (PSL)?
A: Babar Azam made his PSL debut for Islamabad United in 2016. He played the subsequent six seasons for Karachi Kings and is currently a part of the Peshawar Zalmi franchise in PSL.
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