Babar Azam turns spin bowler; Star player ready to surprise South Africa ahead of Test series

Babar bowling in nets [Source: @sohailimrangeo/x.com]

Babar Azam, the Pakistan star, is known for his batting exploits, but ahead of the Test series against South Africa, he unleashed his secret weapon to torment the visiting Proteas side. The hosts will take on the defending champions in their first WTC 2025-27 assignment, and ahead of the game, Babar’s preparation is going at full swing.

Ahead of the first Test, starting on Sunday, a video went viral, wherein Babar could be seen bowling off-break deliveries to the Pakistan batters in nets. He hardly boels in international games, but the video gave a subtle hint at his role for the upcoming series.

Babar to bowl in Test series?

Last year against England, Pakistan prepared a flat deck for the first Test, and after a crushing defeat, the team decided to unleash spin-friendly decks, as they thrashed England in the remaining games. Expect something on the similar lines as South Africa’s strength is pace, but the Pakistan team will unleash a spin-surface.

This could be a subtle hint that Babar, who rarely bowls at the international level could roll his arms and bowl a few overs against the Proteas batters. With Noman Ali and Sajid Khan being the two front-line spinners, Pakistan could use Babar as their secret weapon.

When Babar bowled for first time in Test cricket

It was almost four years ago that Babar rolled his arms for the first time in international cricket. In the Test match between Pakistan and Bangladesh, the former Test captain decided to try his luck as he came to the bowling crease.

He bowled just one over as the Bangladesh batters played him cautiously. However, that moment was etched in the memories of Pakistan fans as it was the first time they had seen Babar with the red cherry in hand.

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